Let Me Love You
by Always-Alison
Summary: Max is broken into what seems like a million pieces, and in her best interest, her family decides to move to Pacific coast. Can the boy next door fix her before she shatters completely? Only if she lets him in. Max/Fang love story. No wings.
1. Let Me Begin

**AN: Starting a new story is so exciting! It's like a brand new start to another writing project that will make me a better author. I hope that the people who followed my previous works like this as well, and that new followers also enjoy it. Please let me know what you think by leaving a review, I reply personally to all that are not anonymous.**

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**TRIGGER WARNING: SELF-HARM, DEPRESSION, AND MENTIONS OF RAPE.**

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Max POV

I'm a lost cause, have been ever since the incident. I sighed, dragging the blade across my thigh for the third time that night. I couldn't risk cutting my wrist in the summer, though it still appealed to me. I had settled on a chunk of leg an inch south of my hipbone instead, watching rouge stream out of three clean, horizontal lines.

I didn't _want_ to cut. I tried _not_ to, but the urge was always there._ I was beyond fucked up for a sixteen-year-old girl.  
_

The cutting had started a few months ago, right after the police had found me wandering the streets, bashed and bruised and looking like hell. The paramedics told my family that I had seized after seeing the flashing lights of the standard NYPD vehicle, but really I knew that I no longer had to hold on, and just let go. I didn't even care if they could save me. I was too far gone.

I woke up two days later in a white room reeking of antiseptics with my mother crying into my arm. The crying only escalated when she realized I was awake, and the only word that could escape her lips was "sorry". I was frozen emotionally, and couldn't bring myself to react. The doctors said that was normal, and that I had developed PTSD. I was just relieved that I didn't have to formulate an excuse for myself.

I started talking three days later, revealing vague details about the incident. They told me I was gone for six months, long enough for the search to be called off. They presumed that I was dead, as most kidnap victims were killed within the first twenty-four hours. I shuddered at the category that they had classified my crime under. Kidnapping seemed too cheery of a title.

I told them about the man that took me, and some of the horrible things that he did to me. I didn't look at my mother the entire time that I spoke to the officer in front of me, but the only thing that my ears seemed to catch was the sound of her sobs. It was all _my_ fault that she was in so much pain.

Another day went by and my siblings were finally able to fly in and visit me. Angela, though we call her Angel, just about tackled me on my hospital bed, not letting me go even after my mother requested her to do so. She never disobeyed my mom, but she made this the exception. She sniffled and said that I had missed her seventh birthday party, but that she was so happy that I was back that she could _explode_.

Zephyr, known to everybody that has been within one hundred feet of his digestive explosions as Gazzy, joined Angel in the bear hug, telling me that he'd kill the man responsible for causing me pain. He promised me that he would blow up his house, but I replied saying how that was completely unnecessary. Especially considering that Gazzy was only nine.

Ella, the last of the Martinez children, had the most dramatic meltdown, ruining all the makeup that had been carefully applied to her face.

"Max!" she cried, pushing her younger siblings aside. "Max! Max! Oh, Max! I never stopped looking for you! We had a search party scan the state twice a week. Oh, if only we'd known that you'd been," she sniffled, wiping her face with her sleeve, "taken all the way to New York, we would've..." she started bawling again. I rubbed her back gently, the same way that I did when someone was bitchy to her at school or a boy broke her heart. She was only one year younger than me, and we were practically inseparable growing up. Now, I felt like a complete stranger in front of the people I was supposed to share a blood bond with.

"Stop, we're supposed to be the ones comforting you." Ella choked out, pushing my hair off my face and managing a weak smile.

Our sob fest was interrupted by my doctor, thankfully.

"Some test results just came in." Dr. Cardin stated. I shuddered. I vaguely remembered the tests that they had performed on me, even the ones that took place during my supposed coma. I thought I had dreamed all of it, but apparently not.

The rape kit tested positive, of course, but no more than a drop of semen was found _outside _my private area. I sighed and explained to them that he had used protection, but they assured me that they had already come to that conclusion, considering the awful damage done to the surrounding area. Thankfully, however, I tested negative for all STI's and pregnancy, so they told me after I healed it would be like nothing ever happened.

Physically, that is.

They never told me how scarred I'd be emotionally. No, not even my therapist could've predicted that. I eventually stopped going to her, after a few weeks, because I had apparently made all the progress that I could make. I wore a fake smile and pretended to be fine, but the more I did so, the more it ate at me inside. Even after long sob sessions with Ella at two in the morning, nothing could make the burning sensation go away. I would feel hot, and feel like I was going to hurl. Everything would hurt. The only thing that could momentarily take away that pain was the blade, and it became my scapegoat.

That was the only thing about me Ella didn't know, at least for the most part.

She knew about the things that happened to me with my attacker. She knew about the rapes, the beatings, the days I would be forced to go without eating. My once healthy 120 lb, athletic 5'6'' frame shrunk to a scarily thin 88 lb skin-and-bones skeleton. I'd been slowly putting weight back on for three months now, but it was hard to maintain. I was still undesirably thin, and I had a body of a child. None of my old clothes fit me like they had before, and I could no longer fill any of my shirts or dresses. Shopping used to be fun, but it was now a chore.

Ella was the only person that I had fully opened up to. She knew that I wasn't alright, and she really tried to help me pass the days. She stayed loyal to me and didn't out me to our mom, though it might have seemed like she should've when I told her that I wish He had killed me, but she had faith that I would recover.

There were only two things in the entire world that I kept from her: my cutting habits, and _his _name.

I winced even thinking about it. I had only heard it once during the half year that He had me captive in his basement, but I could never shake it out of my head. I never will.

_Dylan._

It was the name that he introduced himself as. When I saw him for the first time, before he had taken me from that party, I swooned at the sight of him. He was my new definition of gorgeous. All of the girls there that night had clung to him, but for whatever reason, he decided to keep me in his company, shooing off the rest of the ten-cent hookers ready to jump him. All night long I had just stared into his perfectly blue eyes, running my fingers through his blond hair as our lips tangoed. He wanted to go farther, but I told him that I was a virgin and didn't have one night stands with people I just met. He insisted on driving me home at the very least, and I quickly agreed, texting the upper classman that had driven me in the first place that I had found another ride. I assumed she was getting drunk anyway.

He led me to his car, which he told me was just down the street because he couldn't get good parking, and I probably should've seen that as the first red flag. But no, I was too caught up ogling at his toned arms, wondering how much he could bench. We were almost nearing the end of the street, and it had gotten considerably darker. He stopped and turned around to face me, and I thought he was going to kiss me again, but instead he flashed me a crooked smile that sent every panic neuron off in my body. I knew at that moment that I had made a mistake.

I turned to run, but he was one step ahead of me. I managed to let out one death-curling scream before he hit me over the head, knocking me out completely.

A few hours later I woke up tied and bruised in the backseat of his car, passing through the New Mexico border. We only stopped twice, aside from drive-thru's for the duration of our three-day car trip to New York, and in that time I only got to stand up once. I was given two bottles of water and at one point, a sandwich, but the worst part, aside from the famish, dehydration, pain, and fear, was knowing that it was because of my choices that I was there. And not only was I paying for it, but everyone that cared for me as well.

It was all _my_ fault.

The growing pool of blood on the cold tiles of my bathroom floor shook me of my trip down memory lane. I sighed and started to bandage up the new wounds, tracing the other fifty or so. The cutting started as a weekly thing, but it was never enough. It became daily quickly.

I wiped the blood off the floor and slid my sweatpants back up, preparing myself to leave the confinement of the bathroom walls. I stashed the blade back into the box of tampons, though my period had been absent since I was taken, and put my brave mask back on.

Time to face another day, Max.

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Fang POV

I sighed as I packed up my bedroom for the fourth time in three years. Jeb's lab had gotten moved again, and we had the unfortunate burden of moving with it. Nudge was the most dramatic about the big move, claiming she'd never make new friends and couldn't leave her life here, but somehow she adjusted every time we did so. She was the most social out of the three of us.

Jeb had adopted all of us when we were very young. I was the first to be adopted, when I was three, and Jeb had found out that his neighbor, who happened to be my mother, was a crackhead and was neglecting her only son. Child Protective Services soon stepped in, and Jeb became a foster parent to avoid me getting sent away to a home somewhere. I suspected that the two of them had an affair, but I never pushed my theory. I was just thankful that Jeb had taken me in.

He formally adopted me after eight months, and one month later, adopted a blond-haired blue-eyed blind child named Jeff. But believe me, you'd never know he was blind unless he told you. He never used his lack of sight as a handicap, and I had always been incredibly marveled by his ability to be so _normal_. He wasn't born blind, but he had contracted meningitis at the age of two, and the disease had claimed his vision. His parents were so torn up over the ordeal that they couldn't live with him anymore, because they couldn't deal with or afford a "retarded" child, so they gave him up for adoption. Jeb took him in as soon as Jeff was brought to his attention, and ever since has raised him as his son.

Jeff is known to us as Iggy, the same way that I am known to my family as Fang. Jeb let us reassign ourselves names to make us feel like new people, and at the time I was obsessed with vampires. The nickname had stuck ever since, but I don't regret it. It's a bitch to explain to girls, however. Iggy was awarded his after his infatuation with volcanoes, and the horrid "I-G-N-E-O-U-S, Igneous, rocks!" song that he would sing nonstop.

Nudge came into our household four years later, and Iggy and I weren't thrilled to have a sister to say the least. Her formal name is Tiffany, but we called her "Nudge" because it was all she'd do day in and day out. She grew on us, nevertheless, and I don't know what I'd do without her. We don't know much about her background, other than that she was abandoned at a church when she was three. She doesn't remember anything about her parents either.

Now, with Nudge eleven, Iggy fifteen, and me sixteen, we were knit closer than a sweater. Jeb was around as much as possible, but his job claimed the majority of his time. We didn't blame him, what with cancer research and all, but it wasn't ideal in the slightest. It put a roof over our heads and clothes on our bodies, so we accepted it and moved on. He was always a good father to us anyways.

Everything I owned was put in a box within three hours, and I decided to be a good person and help Nudge pack. _Huge mistake. _Nudge was obsessed, and I mean _obsessed _with fashion, and she was packing her department store quantity of clothing into boxes in rainbow order, mumbling to herself about things getting creases.

I offered to help her with the other stuff in her room, but she just went on a rant about not getting big enough boxes. Steam erupted from her little head when I started to laugh, and she just shooed me away. Fine by me.

The house was packed up in a week, and we were on our way to the other side of the freaking country a day later. _California. _

Iggy was excited about beach bunnies, and that gave Nudge the impression that there were literal rabbits hopping around on the sand. I had to explain over Iggy's hysterical laughing that he was being a sexist pig and talking about hot girls, and she retorted by saying he wouldn't be seeing any anyway. Iggy pretended to be hurt, but didn't really take her comment to offense. Nudge didn't buy his terrible acting anyways.

She did, however, explain to us in vivid detail for a full hour on the plane why she was thrilled to finally go to California.

"I'm going to learn to surf." She stated, multitasking by flipping through some terrible teen-oriented magazine at a pace that must have her reading twenty-words a second.

"And buy super cute clothes," she continued, not even looking up from pages of dresses and airbrushed celebrities. "And there will be hot boys at the beach and movie stars and Hollywood will only be three hours away so we can go there and shop on Rodeo Drive! Ooh, and we can go to Disneyland! That would be so much fun! Plus," she motor-mouthed, being silenced by the palm of Iggy's hand. He didn't even care when she licked him to get him to back off, and he finally released her mouth when she slumped back into her seat.

"Just keep reading your magazine in silence." Iggy ordered, sliding headphones over his ears. He was currently listening to the second audio book of the Twilight series, claiming that being one with the teenage girl franchise does wonders to his sex life.

I guess it's not working, considering he'd been to second base _once_, in the basement of some random girl's house during a dare.

Personally, I think he has a thing for Jacob. Nudge certainly does. If you even mumble about being on team Edward around her, all hell will break loose. Taylor Lautner's abs were even the lock screen picture on her phone.

With the other two freaks occupied, I had nothing to do but think for the remaining four hours of the flight. Contrary to common belief, I was not a depressed emo teenager who wallowed in self pity all day, and became _very _bored _very _quickly by my own thoughts. I decided to screw it and fall asleep with my head resting on the double-paned window, getting woken up abruptly two hours later by a screaming Iggy.

"Fang! The plane's going down! The left engine gave out!" Iggy shouted, shaking me violently.

"Shit!" I said a little too loud before opening my eyes, seeing that everybody was staring at us and that nobody else was panicking. I slapped Iggy in the arm.

"Not funny, man! My heart rate will never be the same." I scolded him, ignoring his snorts and chuckles. At the time I thought Jeb was being self-sacrificing by opting to sit alone in the back of the plane, as the rows only acquired three seats, but now I see the strategy behind his choice. Being stuck with Iggy and Nudge for five hours in an enclosed space was not, by any means, preferable.

Nudge found Iggy's antics amusing too, telling me that I shriek like a little girl. Seeing that our fellow passengers had gone back to their own business, I once again squeezed my eyes shut, prepared to kill the next person that interrupted my slumber.

They call me Fang for a reason.

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**AN: I'm looking to try using a beta reader for this story for the first time. If you're interested, please let me know by either a) sending me a PM or b) mentioning it in a review. Thanks!  
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	2. Let Me Meet You

Reviewer(s) of the Week:

Eeveemaster7 and zoxy2: you guys made me smile so thank you so much!

**Here is chapter 2- I am planning on updating every Friday so I don't fall too behind on updates. I hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: This work is a non-profit product, and all characters of the Maximum Ride franchise belong to James Patterson. Clearly, I am not him. Sorry about that.**

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Max POV

They never caught the man responsible for all my pain. Though he was hardly a man, and certainly no older than eighteen. The police had suggested we move to insure my safety, and so, without hesitation, my entire family's lives were ripped out from under them and transferred to California. Joy.

Nobody seemed to mind, and if they did, they were hiding it well. Even Mom was happy to start a new veterinarian practice in California, claiming that Pacific-coasters were crazy and she could easily charge them double what she charges people in Mesa, Arizona now.

Angel and Gazzy were absolutely thrilled to live by the beach, and for there to be an ocean accompanying the sand. Because here, all we have are miles and miles of hot, desert sand. Angel was especially excited for the seals that she had learned about in science class, having heard that there was a mating ground for them just a mile from our new house. Which, from the pictures I had seen, was _huge_. I had no idea how Mom was paying for it, but she claimed to know a guy who hooked her up with a great deal. Ella joked about how well she "knew" this guy, and I giggled for the first time in a while. A new change in scenery was exactly what I needed at the moment.

Ella was the only one with some resolve about leaving home. She was in the popular crowd at school, something I always envied about her, and had a lot more to leave behind than the rest of us. Her friends assured her that they would Skype all the time and that they would visit over break, but Ella was still pretty torn up. She hid it well from me, because she didn't want me to feel bad about being the reason behind the big move, but nevertheless she understood. And she couldn't deny being pumped about living at the beach.

We were actually driving there, with two U-Haul trucks trailing us, because the drive to La Jolla, CA wasn't entirely painful. It was estimated to take five and a half hours, and we've taken family trips that were _much _longer.

Putting my life into boxes, however, was the challenge. I didn't have a lot of stuff per say, unlike Ella and Angel, but I had enough to consume the good part of a day organizing into cardboard cubes. All my old field hockey, tennis, and swimming trophies, as I used to be quite the athlete, were gently wrapped and placed into one box, where my clothes were just kind of thrown and shoved into another. Ella would scold me for it later, no doubt.

My bathroom was the last thing to get cleaned out, and my collection of blades was carefully hidden in a pile of ponytail holders and headbands that I shoved into a cosmetic pouch. All the other toiletries, such as my trusty box of tampons, soaps, toothpastes, and so on, were being donated to some shelter, so I had to get creative with hiding spaces.

I was wiped from all the packing, and my arms ached. I passed out on my bare mattress, getting some final slumber before leaving my home, and everything I knew, for good.

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Fang POV

We followed the moving truck to our new house, and the ride from the San Diego airport turned out to only be twenty minutes. My jaw was practically in my lap as we pulled into the driveway of the _mansion _standing before us, and I swore we had to be at the wrong address. This was a huge upgrade.

"Wow!" Nudge exclaimed, and Iggy and I nodded with mutual feelings.

"You guys like?" Jeb asked, reading our answers off our faces. "Well, what are you waiting for? Go in!" He cheered, watching us race out of the rental car. Our new one was being delivered sometime within the week.

"I call first dibs on the rooms!" Nudge claimed, sprinting through the front door anyways. I wasn't normally one to get excited, but living in a house like the one I had just entered was pretty damn exciting.

Nudge quickly settled on the first room she walked into, which might not have been the smartest move on her part, but from the way she was bouncing on her heels and making high-pitched noises, I think she'd live with her choice. Her room was big by any standards, and aside from the queen-sized bed with an elegant purple comforter, her favorite color, there was a window bench, which I know she'd been dreaming of having for the longest time, a bean bag, a walk-in closet, and a private bathroom. Which, in retrospect, was a blessing for _all _of us. Sharing a bathroom with her was definitely the worst thing I'd ever had to put up with.

There were two more bedrooms on the top floor, as Jeb's master bedroom was downstairs, and Iggy asked me to give him the most accessible one. He had the hardest time adjusting to new surroundings, because of his blindness, and getting accommodated to new environments was difficult for him.

"Twenty paces forward at nine o'clock there is bedroom, Ig, and it's pretty open and stuff. No sharp corners. I'll help you get set up if you'd like." I offered, always taking pity on my younger brother even though Iggy would kill me for it. He didn't want any of it, but I know he appreciates the extra help. We all need it sometimes.

"Sure, thanks." Iggy replied, following my instructions. We had an unbreachable level of trust between us, because my instructions could easily have led him right into a wall for all he knew. Not that I would ever do that to him in a time like this. He was also my confident in everything, including my horrid break-up with my ex-girlfriend, Lissa. It turned out that she was a whore and slept with four other guys throughout our relationship, not including another long-term relationship with some douchebag named Sam on the side, and she openly told me all of this right after I confessed my undying love for her. She was _proud _of her sexual conquests.

I didn't take to this information very well. I came home drunk, which Jeb would've shot me for, but Iggy could smell the alcohol as soon as I stumbled through the door and locked me in my room for the weekend as I sobered up. I had told him every twisted detail of my heart break, and he was there for me through all of it, like a true brother. Nudge offered to bitch-slap Lissa as well, but that's for another time.

Regardless, Iggy was the person I was closest to in the entire world, with Nudge not that far behind, and anything I could give him in return was my pleasure. But, to be completely blunt, I'm not gay. If he asked me to blow him, I'd chop his dick off in his sleep.

Just to clear some things up.

Jumping back into the present, I vividly depicted Iggy's room to him, giving him a mental floor plan on where everything was. He had a large bed on the wall with a flat screen television adjacent to it. There was a nice lounge area with a small sofa and chair, and a shag rug that I was sure he'd take to liking. It turned out that we'd be sharing a bathroom, but neither of us minded. As long as that vixen Nudge was out of our hair, _literally. _She had once put hair dye in my shampoo and tried to change my dark brown hair to _pink_.

I shuddered at that memory and entered my own room for the first time, blown away by my luck. I had scored with my own balcony _and _roof-top area. The balcony was accessed by glass double doors on the right face of the room, and it was big enough to fit a lounge chair, a table, and two stools. A small staircase led to the roof, which was decorated in little tea-lights. The wasn't much more than a twelve foot by twelve foot platform and a railing, but it could easily be decked out. The whole get-up directly faced another balcony of a neighboring house, but at the moment it seemed to be vacant. _Whatever_. There were only two other houses along our street to begin with, which shared our private strip of beach, and the other neighbors were apparently and old, retired couple, so I didn't expect to see much of them.

The inside of my room was also extremely nice, though considerably smaller than the other two bedrooms. I honestly couldn't care less about the size, however. The bed was pushed against the left wall and was a loft, with a mini staircase cascading towards the bed. Underneath was a leather futon, and get this, a fucking mini fridge. The only other thing in the room was a small chest with drawers and a closet, but I couldn't have asked for more.

This was kind of awesome, off the record of course.

"Nudge! Iggy! Fang! Come downstairs, please!" Jeb hollered, ushering moving people with boxes around the house at the same time.

"Be careful with that!" I heard Jeb shout at one of the guys as I descended down the stairs, eying Iggy already breaking in the new sofa in the living room.

"Jeb, this place is awesome! My room is so perfect! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Nudge squealed, pulling Jeb into a bear hug. Jeb patted her on the back, telling her that he was ecstatic that she was pleased with her new living accommodations.

"I called you guys down here because it turns out we aren't the only new people in the neighborhood." Jeb stated, though I could hardly call three houses a neighborhood. Aside from that, the third house with the old people was a decent ways away.

"There is another family moving into the house next to us later today. I talked to the realtor, and he said that they are a nice family from Arizona. I wanted to go run to the store to get them a house-warming gift, so do you guys mind bossing around the moving company for twenty minutes or so while I'm gone?" Jeb asked. It was so typical of him to act like he was obligated to get a gift for the new neighbors, whom were only newer than us by a few hours. It was a nice gesture, however, and I respected him for it.

"Nudge'll handle the micromanaging." I claimed, watching her stick her tongue out at me. "I'll man the fort with Iggy."

"I'll be back in under half an hour, call me if one of those thugs breaks anything! I want full documentation so we'll be reimbursed!" Jeb instructed as he left through the side door. I could see hints of ocean rise and fall through the window, and made a mental note to scope out the beach tomorrow, if not later today.

Nudge went into full crazy mode as soon as she gained authority, shouting orders at the men carrying boxes. "Hey! Hey! You in red! That box goes upstairs, first room on your right. All boxes labeled 'Nudge' go there too, got it?" She shouted, watching him nod in compliance. I hope Jeb tips these poor guys well.

There wasn't much unpacking I could do until all the boxes were in, so I amused myself by flipping through television channels. They were all foreign to me in terms of numbers, and it would take some time to get readjusted.

"Channel 440 is universally the Playboy channel." Iggy requested, though I was positive that his subscription was canceled long ago.

"Sorry, chum. 440 here is actually the gardening channel. But, I mean, if that's what you're into..." I teased, receiving a playful kick to the shin, one with scary accuracy for a blind guy.

"I wonder if the people that move in next door will be hot. The girls, I mean." Iggy corrected himself.

I just shrugged. Ever since my break up with Lissa, I hadn't really gotten back into the whole dating thing.

"Oh no, no, mister! Can you read? That box clearly says 'fragile' so carry it like it's the urn full of your deceased Grammy's ashes!" Nudge hollered, sending both me and Iggy into a laughing fit.

Nudge is... special.

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Max POV

Mom woke me up as soon as we arrived at the house. It was just as nice, if not nicer, than the pictures. The ocean was rumbling softly behind the two colossal structures before me, with another one a little farther down the road, and everything was just so damn peaceful.

There was another moving truck in the neighbor's driveway, and the realtor had previously told Mom that city people from the east coast were moving out here as well. It would actually be nice to not be the only new people in town.

I seemed to be the last person to sprint out of the car to call dibs on a room, but I didn't so much as mind. I walked into the house civilly, but excitement got the best of me and I found myself racing up the stairs, passing Gazzy and Angel on the way. Ella had already settled on a room, and the door at the end of the hall caught my attention. It was more isolated than the others, thus allowing me more privacy, so I jumped at the opportunity to take it.

Angel and Gazzy quickly agreed on which room was theirs down the hall, but from what I saw as I passed by them they were practically identical anyways. Their rooms were joined by a bathroom, but Ella and I got our own.

I finally walked through the door, and took in the bedroom that now belonged to me. The room was cozy, if I had to describe it in one word. It wasn't _small_, but everything was practically organized and didn't take up much space. The bed was on one wall, there was a little couch and ottoman in the corner, and the middle of the room was relatively open. The walls were lined with shelves and storage spaces, and there was a bathroom access by the entrance to the room, but the thing that most caught my attention was the sliding door at the far face.

Turns out, I had my own, personal balcony. I don't think I'd ever been so... hopeful? _Happy? _Not since the incident, at least. The pain seemed to have subsided, though I wasn't too optimistic that it would stay that way. Call me a pessimist.

I couldn't resist venturing out onto the balcony, taking in all the surrounding area. I could completely see the beach stretch for endless miles, and there seemed to be gorgeous rock formations and tidal pools that I'd be a fool not to check out later. Plus, an identical balcony connected to the neighbor's house stared right at me. It made me slightly timid, but I didn't think it would be a conflict unless whoever acquired it was a massive pervert.

I mean, city folk weren't known for their chivalry, but how bad could they be?

And with that thought, there was a loud knock on the front door that echoed throughout the entire house. I jumped a bit, then heard Mom holler at us to come downstairs to meet the new neighbors.

There were four of them standing at our entrance way when I made my way down, followed shortly by Angel. Ella and Gazzy had beaten us downstairs. The man, presumably the father figure, had a goofy grin on his face and a dried fruit tray in tow, and behind him stood two teenaged guys and a younger girl. I could tell right off the bat that the kids were adopted, simply by the mass differences in their appearances.

The girl had a caramel skin tone, with dark, unruly hair and brown eyes. They boy next to her was blond and pale, and the third was... hot. At least that was what I would've classified him as a year ago. I realized I was staring and corrected myself, but I don't think he noticed. He had a gorgeous olive skin tone, and his shirt was on the tighter side, revealing a toned chest. His hair flowed perfectly across his face, and his eyes were just, _deep_. I could've looked into them all day.

I mentally slapped myself for turning the new neighbor into an object. A very, _very _attractive object, but I had to get my self together. It was always the pretty boys that got you, anyways, and I couldn't let my guard slip because of some handsome stranger.

Mom made the first introduction. "I'm Valencia Martinez, but please, call me Val. These are my four children." She stated, nudging Ella to state her name.

"I'm Ella." She introduced, her voice peppy and girly like always. Angel followed her lead, going down the assembly line of Martinez children.

"Angela," Angel said softly, "but call me Angel."

"Zephyr." Gazzy waved.

"That's a cool name." The girl on our doorstep commented.

"No it's not. Call me Gazzy." He replied, confusing the hell out of that girl.

"You'll find out how he earned that name soon enough." Ella joked, clearing up the girl's confusion. She seemed worried now, however.

I was the last to go. "Max." I simply stated, looking up for a second to be polite. Guess what set of eyes mine just happened to lock with?

_Him_. I'll call him Eyes for now. Eyes stared back at me, but it wasn't awkward. I didn't want to look away, honestly, but the man's voice broke our gaze.

"I'm Jeb Batchelder, nice to meet you." He introduced, shaking my mother's hand as she extended it. Mom was big on hand shakes, said it was the key to a person's soul or some crap like that.

She shook the girl's hand next. "I'm Tiffany, but my buttheads of brothers call me Nudge, so you can call me that too." She chimed, eagerly shaking Mom's hand. Mom held it out to the blond boy next.

"Jeff, nice to meet you." He said, ignoring the hand in front of him. Mom, and all of us really, were puzzled, but Nudge jumped right in.

"Ig- I mean Jeff, but we call him Iggy, is blind. He didn't see your hand, sorry. He's not being rude or anything." She mused, speaking for her older brother.

"Sorry about that." He apologized, extending his hand for Mom to shake it. I don't know much about blind people, but he seemed to be getting around just fine. Like he didn't have a walking stick or a guide dog or anything, but maybe I'm stereotyping here.

Eyes was the last one to introduce himself. "Nick, but I go by Fang." He shook Mom's hand politely.

"Long story." He stated to me, grinning slightly. My stomach dropped instantly. Eyes- I mean Fang, was turning me into butter and I hadn't even known him for longer than two minutes. To think about it, nobody has had my stomach in this much of a pretzel since, well, _Him. _My body shuddered as he came into my head.

_Shake out of it, Max_. I thought to myself, unable to afford having a mental breakdown in front of my family and a bunch of strangers. I couldn't help it, however, the sudden reminder of His existence was too powerful. I still wasn't able to face all of the horrid things I had been through at the hands of Him, and this weakness that I had brought onto myself was taking over.

Images of the His basement poisoned my thoughts, followed immediately by the brutal beatings I had endured. The scars I had caused myself weren't the only ones that littered my body.

_"You whore! You deserve this! You are NOTHING, you hear me? Nothing!" He had shouted at me, forcefully removing my clothing that first time He had done the unimaginable. My pleads were useless, they only seemed to further encourage Him. I was so scared, so scared and so humiliated at the same time. _

It took me a minute to shake the flashback from my mind, recovering slowly from my frozen state. I was nothing, absolutely nothing. I was broken merchandise, and desirable to no one. Gawking at Fang was pointless, he'd never see anything in me. I was just an ugly whore.

"You okay?" Ella whispered, placing her hand on my shoulder. I jumped and whisked it away, turning to face the hurt on her face as I did so.

"Sorry, yeah, I'm fine. I just zoned out." I replied lightly, checking to make sure everybody's gaze was still on my mother. To my appeal, they were, and my Mom's gentle speech, one that I had completely missed, ended with an invitation.

"Please, come in!" Mom invited, and Ella and I stepped out of the way to let them into our house of all of ten minutes.

"We were going down to the beach if you guys wanted to join." Nudge said walking into our kitchen, and my three other siblings eagerly accepted the invitation. I figured there would be no harm in going with them, as the exploring the backyard was on my to-do list. Doing so with Fang didn't seem like such a chore, anyways.

If he didn't turn out to be a kidnapper, that is.

* * *

**I really want to thank my awesome beta reader, DreamingSkye, for catching my spelling and grammar mistakes and helping me make this chapter stronger. Also, thank you to everybody who reviewed, followed, and favorited this story so far- it meant a lot to me.  
**

**I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please let me know what you think by leaving a review in the box. I respond to all non-anonymous ones personally.**

**Fly on,**

**Alison**


	3. Let Me Know You

**Winter Break is the best thing ever invented. The holidays, the time off from school, the time away from _those _people. Are any of you doing anything super cool?**

**Reviewer(s) of the Week:**

Dot Ride **and** spiritofthedragon15

**Thank you to everybody supporting this story as well. And Happy Holidays!**

* * *

Fang POV

The Martinez's seemed to be nice, but one person particularly caught my attention. _Max. _Her name suited her so well, I determined, trying to be conspicuous as I stared at her while Nudge casually chatted to her and her siblings. There was something different about this girl, I could tell, but it only drew me to her more. It might have been the way her dirty blond hair draped over her tanned shoulders, or the way her eyes bumped paths with mine, if only for a second, when she was introducing herself. Her eyes were such a beautiful brown, and I decided it was my new favorite color.

Creeper level: one thousand.

Her voice too, was just... perfect. That pretty much sums everything up. Max was perfect, and she'd only been in my life for a matter of minutes.

My heart half jumped when she agreed to go to explore the beach with the three of us, well her and her siblings agreed, but all that mattered was that she was going, and that I'd get to spend time with her. If I believed in love at first sight, which maybe I do now, she'd be it.

I only knew this girl's name and I'd be happy to drop to the floor and act like an elephant if it made her happy. What the Hell was wrong with me?

"If you kids want to head on out, Val and I were going to see if the Wilson's are home." Jeb stated, and I figured that he was talking about the old couple at the end of the street.

"Okay!" Nudge replied, striding across the Martinez's house and exiting through their back door, the one that literally dropped you onto the beach.

The two younger Martinez children followed her idly, tailed loosely by Max and Ella. Iggy and I hung back, and he followed me by the sound of my footsteps. This kid, with his scary good hearing, has become wickedly accurate at tracing your path behind you as you walk.

"So," Iggy whispered lightly enough for me to be the only one to hear it. "Any of the girls hot? Ella and Max sound our age, right?"

"Yeah, I think Max is older, though. Both of them are attractive, I guess." I down-played. Max was _mine_, and she was beyond merely attractive. She was _beautiful_.

"Sweet!" Iggy high-fived me with piercing accuracy. It really was scary how good he was at being blind.

The younger kids ran around, splashing their ankles in the water and climbing on rocks while Iggy, Ella, Max, and I strolled behind, making small talk.

"You guys are from the east coast, right? Where from?" Ella asked, closely walking by Max's side.

"Baltimore. Jeb did research at Hopkins, but he was transferred here. You?" Iggy replied, keeping up with us perfectly. I could tell Ella and Max were puzzled.

"Mesa." Max gave a one worded answer.

"Cool." I replied awkwardly with way too much pep in my tone. _Smooth, Fang, smooth._

"I guess." Ella mumbled, but Max remained rather silent. _Way to scare off the pretty girl, moron._

"I hear it never gets cold here, can you imagine?" Iggy broke the silence, bringing up the freaking weather. Mental face palm.

"Yeah, it didn't really get too cold in Mesa either, but Baltimore got cold, right?" Max asked, now focusing on my brother.

"The winter's were pretty harsh, but the summers were warm. It was nice to have seasons." I replied, stealing Iggy's opportunity. Sure, it was slightly an asshole move, but he'd understand. The girls didn't seem to notice.

"Crap, hold on." Max said before sprinting up the beach. "Gazzy, get the Hell off that rock! If you slip and crack your head open I'm throwing you to the sharks!" She hollered, ushering her younger brother off the huge rock that the waves mercilessly crashed against. Gazzy jumped off, splashing himself in water and drenching his clothing from waist down, then sprinted away from her playfully. Nudge and Angel followed, and the three of them played like little children. It's been a while since I'd seen Nudge so... care free. It reminded me that she was in fact a child.

Max came jogging back, panting lightly. A gleam of sweat glistened across her face, and with the setting sun hitting her, she looked like she was glowing. Her shorts had gotten splashed in the process as well, and they clung tightly to her body in just the right way... Shit, no! I couldn't think like _that_ about some girl that I had just met, even if she was my future soulmate. It was just... wrong. I wasn't going to turn into _that_ guy.

"Sorry about that, Gazzy is an idiot." She directed this to Iggy and me, and Ella agreed with a laugh.

"Don't worry, so is Fang." Iggy teased, and Max giggled. God, could she get any cuter? Her body vibrated with her giggle, and her breasts bounced just slightly... and again my mind was in the gutter. It was a good thing nobody around here was psychic.

"So Iggy, how are you so good without your eyesight?" Ella flirted, reading his face and quickly correcting herself. "No offense, I mean. You don't have to answer that... it was stupid. Sorry." She mumbled, her smile dropping.

"No, no, no, it's okay really." Iggy reassured, and Ella's face completely lit up. She definitely had a thing going on for him, but Iggy was too blind to see it. Pun intended.

"My other senses are heightened, especially my hearing, so it makes up for not being able to see. Mostly, at least." Iggy answered.

They kept flirting back and forth with each other, and it became awkward to be around. Max seemed to be feeling the same way, and using every ounce of confidence that I had, I broke my silence.

"Max, maybe we should leave those two alone for a bit." I whispered, knowing Iggy could hear it anyways.

Max giggled again, nodding quickly. If I didn't know any better I'd say she was relieved to have an out.

"We can go catch up to the younger ones if you'd like." I offered, unsure if she'd be comfortable being alone with a strange city boy she just met.

"Oh God, no. I'm just thrilled Angel and Gazzy found another playmate instead of me." She replied, making my heart flip. She was choosing to stay alone with me, even if it was only because I was her best alternative. I was perfectly okay with that if it were the case.

"Why'd you move out here?" I asked, walking idly beside her. She froze for a second, causing me to panic. Was that not the right thing to bring up?

"My family just needed to get away from Arizona, that's all." She replied, giving me a look that told me not to push her answer any further. Maybe this girl had more to her than just looks and charm.

"It is scenic out here. It's so cool that this is our backyard." Max observed, quickly changing the subject.

"It is." I swiftly agreed, and Max decided to sit, tracing patterns in the sand. I dropped down next to her, watching her fingers swirl casually.

"If it's nice out tomorrow, I know Nudge wanted to swim in the ocean, if your family wanted to join us." I offered, lying about Nudge previously mentioning anything about swimming. I knew that the water was ice cold, but I'd suffer through to get the chance to see Max in a swimsuit.

"That sounds nice, I'll ask my siblings later. I'm sure Angel and Gazzy are already down though." Max chimed, looking up from her series of circles.

Our eyes caught each other's for another moment, and it took all my will power not to lean in and kiss her. That would be so, so inappropriate.

But the two warm circles just seemed to speak to me, and I had to break away before I did something I'd regret.

But man, I could gaze into her eyes for the rest of my life and die happy.

* * *

Max POV

I secretly jumped out of my skin when Fang asked me to ditch my flirtatious sister and his brother. After walking and talking, and very vaguely answering his question as to why we moved here, I rested on the sand, watching through my peripheral vision as Fang sat down next to me.

When he brought up swimming, however, I had to struggle to catch my breath. Swimming meant swimsuits, which meant showing more skin than normal clothing permitted. He couldn't... nobody could... see what I had done to myself. I was ashamed, and couldn't let my secret be known. Swimming wasn't my cup of tea anymore.

It had been, years ago. I was state-ranked in most of my strokes, and could line the walls with trophies and ribbons. Any body of water could occupy my time for hours, even the bath tub. Now, swimming was a reminder that I was a failure, and was too weak to even get passed the days.

Fang didn't seem to notice my hesitation, as he was watching me trace patterns by my leg, but I quickly replied. "That sounds nice, I'll ask my siblings later. I'm sure Angel and Gazzy are already down though." I stuttered, hoping I could come up with an excuse as to why I couldn't participate with them.

I looked up to see if he had bought my answer, and our eyes locked for the second time. His pupils were still as they studied mine, and I could see my reflection in his eyes. _Those eyes_. Those beautiful, beautiful, eyes.

He looked away, and I admit I was slightly disappointed. We were silent again for a portion of a minute, but Gazzy interrupted us, panting, and claimed that they wanted to show each other their houses. I nodded, telling him that we'd walk them back, and Fang went over to tap Iggy on the shoulder.

Ella was practically glowing as she skipped over to me, promising flirty details when we got back inside. We and the boys said our good byes, as we all needed to get settled and such, and promised to meet outside at eleven tomorrow morning. I warned Gazzy and Angel that if they weren't back inside in an hour I'd throw their stuff into the ocean, and they assured me they'd be back in half that.

Ella and I watched as the two boys walked into their respective house, and we turned to do the same.

"Did you see how cute they were?" Ella squealed, more excited over a boy than I'd seen since her freshmen sweetheart, Benny. I smiled and nodded, only considering Fang. I mentally shook my head, he would never be into such a worthless piece of shit like me.

"Tell me more later, Elles, I need some Max-time." I stated, worrying her instantly.

"Are you okay? Do we need to talk?" She asked. I shook my head; I just needed some time to myself. A lot had happened in a day.

"I'll be unpacking in my room if you need me, really." Ella mentioned, grabbing one of her boxes off the counter. I shuffled up the stairs and locked my door behind me, looking for the box with my cosmetics. One little cut, it didn't even have to be deep, was all I needed to soothe my anxiety. I was falling for a boy that probably had no interest in me. Ella was the prettier sister, anyways.

I panicked when I saw the box wasn't in my room, but I couldn't bring myself to sort through all the other boxes downstairs to find it. I stepped out onto my balcony instead, relying on the fresh air to calm my nerves.

But when I stepped out onto the cast iron platform, my nerves only rose. There was a person standing on the balcony, staring at me with hawk eyes.

_Fang_.

I didn't want to be rude and go back inside merely because of his presence thirty-some feet away, and I figured he wouldn't be much of a bother, so I reclined in the cushy lounger and dreamed of the life I lived one year ago.

I had friends, actual friends, and not just Ella. I was a good student, a good daughter, and I had a future.

My thoughts of the past went black as I dosed off in a nap, but was awoken minutes later by the point of a... paper airplane?

I unfolded it, seeing handwriting neatly scribbled across the paper in thick, black ink.

**I'm glad you're the one occupying the balcony :) -Fang**

I smiled, waving to acknowledge him. I stood up to fetch a pen, flashing him my extended pointer finger to let him know I was coming back momentarily. I raced inside and fished through the backpack splayed across my bed until I felt the pen under my fingers. Six or so failed airplanes littered the beach below us, I noticed as I walked back outside, and something about the amount of tries it took Fang to get his message across made me warm and fuzzy inside.

Hormones are a bitch.

I wrote to the side of his writing in sloppier, barely legible red letters, and refolded his aircraft following the creases as a guide. I had no trouble releasing the paper plane back to his balcony, hitting the door with piercing accuracy. Paper airplanes are my forte.

**Ditto**

I had written. I saw that Fang was smiling, and realized that he had the most gorgeous smile. It was so natural on his face, and yet, I'd only seen him wear it half-full. Maybe he had inner turmoil as well. That would be convenient, two broken souls finding each other. I better call Hollywood, they would eat that plot up alive.

The plane soared to my side again, and I moved quickly to see his message.

**Packing not suiting your fancy?**

I laughed internally at his written tongue. It was so old-fashioned and proper, which fitted him in an odd way. That, and it was kind of adorable.

**I think I'll build a fort with the boxes instead.**

I sent the message soaring through the sky, but a gust of wind seemed to knock it off track. I had no other paper to replace it with, but Fang seemed one step ahead of me. Another plane came gliding towards me in a matter of seconds.

**Nice aim, here's a spare ;). I have you covered.**

I scribbled away, writing faster than I think I've ever written before, even when copying down homework as the teacher was walking around to check it.

**The answer to your last question was no. Fort building seemed more appealing.**

This time, to my leisure, the plane landed exactly where it was supposed to. No inconvenient weather bursts streaked my track record.

**Send over your boxes on a cargo plane, we can double team.**

Fang replied.

**Sure thing, but we'll need to go butcher some more trees first.**

I joked through the ink. Being playful, flirty even, with him was so natural, so easy. I felt oddly comfortable with him, not in the same way as I did with Ella, of course, but I felt like there was a point in trying to connect with him, as friends at the very least.

**Let me go grab my axe. Which box was it in again?**

He was walking right into my response.

**Please, find it. Apply generously. I can smell your BO from here.**

Fang faked a hurt as he read it, sniffing his underarms and shrugging. I could not stop giggling, which was completely uncharacteristic of me.

**Touché. I thought you were nicer than that.**

I squinted to see him wink at me, making me blush. I hoped that he couldn't see it.

**Maybe you were wrong about me.**

I didn't catch the deeper meaning that could be interpreted in my message until it was almost in his grasp, but I don't think he read into it anymore than it was meant to be.

**Maybe I just need to get to know you a little better :)**

The words stood alone on a fresh sheet of paper, as the other one had grown full. My stomach dropped; Fang wanted to get to know me? I was skeptical, I'll admit, but the proposition intrigued me. I hadn't even considered being with somebody _romantically _since well, _that_, but no harm no foul, right?

**Maybe so ;). **

I bit my lip, eagerly awaiting his reply. Maybe I had interpreted his message incorrectly. Oh God, I'm such a fool.

**Tomorrow?**

My stomach must think it made the women's Olympic gymnastics teams by the number of somersaults it was doing. So I_ had_ read his note correctly after all.

**I'll get rid of the kiddies.**

Flirting via paper airplane was officially my new favorite way to flirt. I didn't have to worry about hesitation and awkward body language. It was perfectly impersonal and personal at the same time, a recipe for success.

**May I have your digits?**

Fang requested, and I could literally hear the words snidely leaving his throat in his velvet tone. I complied to his appeal.

**555-851-1004. Text me.**

Surely enough, a moment later, my phone vibrated in my pocket. I had forgotten that it was still in there.

**Hello there, neighbor.**

I read in Helvetica on my screen. I quickly saved the number as a new contact.

**I like the airplanes better. Phone is going bye-bye for now.**

I texted, waiting for the airplane to arrive on my balcony again. It did, and I almost tore it in the unfolding process.

**There's a bug in Nudge's room, my services are needed before I end up breaking out the defibrillator. Be back in a jiffy.**

Fang was already inside the house by the time I finished reading his message. I wondered what Ella would say when I told her about the note exchange Fang and I had going on. She'd probably shriek and start picking out a wedding dress for me, but I'd only love her more for it.

I wasn't even looking up when the next plane landed by my feet, shaking me from my imagination.

**Jeb needs help finding silverware for dinner. Text you later?**

I noticed how Fang wrote "Jeb" and not "Dad", yet Fang respected him as a father and vice versa.

**I should probably make myself useful as well. Forts and all, the likes. Still on for tomorrow?**

My heart was pumping magma.

**Hell yeah.**

Was his only reply. We waved good bye as we stepped back into our bedrooms, watching each other until the very last moment. I held the two airplanes that ended on my side in my arms, reading over them again. I made a mental note to collect the ones that had failed landings.

The best part? Razor blades never even crossed my mind once.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! Have a wonderful holiday (whatever you celebrate) and cherish all of the fortunes that you have. Take the time to do something meaningful for somebody else, it may make a bigger impact than you would think. And, as always, fly on!**


	4. Let Me Text You

**I hope you all had a great Christmas and are ready for the new year! I can't believe 2013 is almost over! And once again, much thanks to my awesome beta reader DreamingSkye for agreeing to work with me :).**

**Reviewer(s) of the week:**

spiritofthedragon15 **and **WhatIsLovee** : Your reviews meant so much to me! As did all of the reviews I received; thank you guys!**

**Without further blabber on my part, here is your chapter!**

* * *

Fang POV

If I didn't owe Jeb so much I never would've left Max and our paper airplane exchange. I could guarantee, without a sliver of doubt, that the very second my services are dismissed, I'll be blowing her phone up with messages.

I've never been so crazy over one girl, _ever_. Even with Lissa, it wasn't this... _desperate. _There wasn't the same need to be filled by her and only her. There was never a girl that occupied so many of my thoughts at once; there was never anybody like Max.

I was trying to tune out the Nudge Channel as she blabbered away about her amazing afternoon with Gazzy and Angel, and how they were going to be best friends all summer long. Nudge's seniority over the two younger children didn't faze her in the slightest, and she seemed to enjoy acting like a little kid with them. It was actually refreshing to see her act her age, and not five years older in her attempt to be more like Iggy and me.

Iggy, at the moment, was sorting silverware and kitchen tools to cater to his picky needs. How our blind brother earns his keep as head chef still remains a mystery to all of us, but he loves cooking and acquires some serious skill. Jeb doesn't usually make it home until after dinner on most nights, though he tries to arrange a family supper at least twice a week, and my level of cooking expertise ends after peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Nudge set the oven on fire making brownies last year, and since has been banned from the kitchen without proper supervision, which neither I nor Iggy can provide.

Thus, Iggy whooping up gourmet meals benefits us all. On occasion he'll even make cake, his specialty, and he promised to bake one as soon as his kitchen was in order. And believe me, we would most definitely be holding him to that.

"Fang, I need some muscle. Get over here." Jeb panted, wobbling into the room with a box the size of him.

"There's another by the front door, our microwave and blender are in there. Do you mind?" He huffed, shaking out his arms. I shook my head; I didn't mind at all.

I dragged the box down the hall, needing to set it down once before continuing. The thing had to weigh what, seventy pounds? Eighty maybe? Sure I could probably lift more, but the overall size of the box itself was enough to create a challenge.

"Here." I set the box down, allowing Iggy to determine where he wanted the appliances placed. Nudge was put in charge of stuffing the cupboards with bowls, plates, and glasses, and she let all of us know multiple times that she would rather be organizing her closet.

"I need to unpack all of my clothes so I can find my bathing suits for tomorrow! They were like at the bottom of one of the boxes and I don't remember which one so I may as well just unpack everything and I mean I'll have to do it eventually so why not just get it out of the way now and–" She blabbered, getting cut off by Jeb.

"Enough! Just go, enough of this nonsense!" Jeb dismissed her, sparing all of us men. Nudge smiled and skipped upstairs, occupied by nothing besides her pride and joy.

Jeb let Iggy and I free as well after finishing the kitchen, telling us he expected two out of the four boxes in each of our rooms to be unpacked by the time he arises in the morning.

I raced upstairs, grabbing for my phone and not my obligations. I quickly went to Max's contact, my heart pounding in my chest as I did so, and sent her a message.

**F: How's ur fort going?**

I slumped down in the futon, waiting anxiously for her reply.

* * *

Max POV

I jumped as I felt my phone buzz next to me. Fang's name flashed across my screen, and a smile erupted on my face. He had kept to his promise.

**F: How's ur fort going?**

He asked, and I looked at the stack of boxes waiting to be unpacked and shuddered. I still had another one to find somewhere downstairs as well.

**M: On hiatus, I needed clothes more than I needed a castle.  
**

I replied.

**F: Ur priorities are unclear.**

**M: Tell me about it. How's ur unpacking going?**

**F: I'm ready to stab my eyes out with forks, but Iggy hasn't unpacked them yet. *Sigh***

**M: Come on over, I'll let u borrow one as long as u promise to wash it.**

**F: Unfortunately Jeb has me on house arrest until I unpack half of the boxes in my room. **

**M: Sucks. My mom granted me freedom after I set up my bathroom.**

**F: Unfortunately I'm still enslaved. Slave master walks around with a whip.**

**M: Lucky for me I'm more along the terms of an indentured servant. I get paid in scarce minutes of free time.  
**

**F: How much longer do u have?**

**M: Mm... 10 mins, maybe? I need to help Angel make her bed at some point.**

**F: Step out onto the balcony, I have something for you.**

**M: Sounds suspicious. Gimme a sec.**

I could see Fang's silhouette through his curtains as he walked closer to the door, finally stepping out seconds later. It was harder to see him in the evening light, but the bright lanterns on the wall of his house lit him well enough.

He shook a box labeled "Max Miscellaneous" in huge letters, and I tapped my thumbs furiously on my keyboard.

**M: I've been looking for that! Why the Hell do u have it?**

**F: Movers took it into our house by mistake. I'll run over and give it to u.**

**M: K. I'll meet u down there.**

I replied, racing to the exterior of my house. _That _was the box I was looking for, the one with my blades. I _needed _that box now. So help me God if Fang had opened it.

He slipped out the side door with my stuff in tow, meeting me in the gap under our balconies.

"What's in this thing anyways?" Fang questioned, handing the cardboard container over to me.

"Just my diary, my deepest secrets, and my stripper clothing. Nothing important." I joked, receiving a chuckle. It was taking more effort than it should to remain composed.

"Nah, I'm just kidding. About two of those." I giggled, hoping he'd think it was a joke about my double life as a stripper. If he'd only known the truth about that middle statement...

"Mhm. Well, I better head back inside before Master can find an excuse to whip me again." Fang smirked. "But we'll talk later. Good luck."

"You too." I regarded, darting into the house and up to my room as soon as he turned away. I ripped through all the meaningless paper awards and documents that I couldn't stand to throw away before finding the small cosmetic case at the bottom, unzipping it and dumping out the contents on the floor. Much too my relief, all four silver blades remained, completely untouched.

I re-hid them in my bathroom before returning to my bedroom to clean up the mess I had just made, seeing Ella waiting for me at the door. My heart stopped beating.

"Box fall?" Ella giggled, dropping onto her knees to help me. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding in when I figured that she didn't see anything she wasn't supposed to see, smiling at her as she put the papers into a pile.

"I shouldn't have stacked them all on top of each other like that." I dully noted, listening to my sister's enlightening laugh.

"I can help you with your closet if you'd like. I already finished mine, and I only have two boxes left. I got lonely." Ella offered, now scrambling up the ponytail holders. If only she knew what had been laced in them seconds earlier.

"That'd be awesome, thanks!" I exclaimed, removing the top box from the tower and ripping it open. Dozens of outfits littered the interior, but Ella didn't seem to be intimidated. She must have had twice as much to put away though, now that I think about it.

"Max, you _never _wear this anymore! It's so cute!" Ella whined, holding up a loose pink tank top with a detailed collar. If there is one thing left to know about me, it's that pink is _not _my color.

"Ella, I never wore that! Aunt Jill got me that for my birthday. You can have it if you want." I replied, eying her clutching it tightly.

"Oh, thank you! I promise I'll wear it!" Ella squealed, pulling me into a hug.

"No problem." I muttered softly.

Emptying the boxes with my clothes, with an extra set of hands, only took forty minutes. It was rather painless with Ella's help. We were just about done, putting shoes on the rack at the bottom, before Fang's name slipped my lips.

"So Fang has the other balcony." I stated, acknowledging him as his bedroom light turned on across the lawn.

"Oh, does he now?" Ella ribbed, concluding without any evidence that there was something going on between us. She wasn't wrong, but her instincts on that sort of thing was kind of creepy. It was her supernatural power.

"Yeah. I'm glad it's him. We were just texting and–" I was cut off as soon as I brought up texting him.

"You have his number?! Jesus Christ, when did this happen?" Ella shrilled, her eyes bugging out of her head.

"Two hours ago, maybe?" I answered.

"How'd you get it? Were you guys secretly hanging out?" Ella interrogated, nudging me on the arm. I forgot we'd dismissed the guys an hour prior to that.

"You're going to laugh, but it was via paper airplane." I replied, wincing in anticipation for the kick she'd get out of me.

"No way!" Ella incredulously remarked.

"Here, I have proof!" I defended, collecting the two paper crafts from my bed. I shoved them into her greedy arms.

"I walked out on the balcony for some fresh air, and ended up taking a short nap. He caught my attention by throwing these at me. If you see some other ones floating around the lawn, it's probably his first attempts." I explained.

"No. Freaking. Way. Max! That is like the most romantic thing I've ever heard of!" She proclaimed, reading every word in detail, probably trying to decipher his feelings through his handwriting. As if the slant of his L's would reveal his undying love for me.

"It's not like that. We're just friends." I half-lied. I didn't exactly know where Fang and I stood relationship wise. I definitely was not ready to be classified as girlfriend material.

"I'm calling bullshit, Max! I saw you guys on the beach earlier, you are so into each other!" She cooed.

"Maybe a little, but I don't think he feels the same way. We just met, anyways... and, well y'know..." I admitted sheepishly.

"No, he likes you. I'm psychic when it comes to love, remember?"

"Sure, Ella." I sneered, the same way I did when Angel tried to convince me, as she had already fooled Gazzy, that she could read minds last year. Ella studied the fallen look on my face, reading into it accurately for once.

"But that's not it, is it?" She asked, dancing around the subject she wanted to break into without actually saying it directly. Even with all of our conversations and sob fests, dating and my feelings towards it had never once come up. Our talks were always centered around _me_ and me being able to function like a normal human being. We talked over every last one of my meltdown triggers, from His hairstyle to the state of New York as a whole, yet my position on dating never once arose. I guess she guessed I wasn't nearly recovered enough to even consider it. Maybe she's been right this whole time, maybe I'm just fooling myself by thinking Fang and I can become something.

"No, Ella, that's not it. I'm the problem here, not Fang." I muttered, avoiding eye contact. According to Ella that same avoidance was one of my ticks that told her I was at battle with my inner demons, and it always told her to approach the topic with caution.

"What do you mean by that?" She asked for clarification, exactly how my former shrink used to.

_Her name was Dr. Finkelstein, but she insisted I call her Jen. It was a trick, the whole first-name-basis thing, to get me to feel more comfortable with her. I didn't comply. I think in my report I'm categorized as 'stubborn'._

_"I feel guilty." I had responded vaguely when she asked about my condition._

_"What do you mean by that?" She responded, tapping her pen on her notepad._

_"Like it was my fault that I had gotten lured away from the party. I was stupid, and my family never would've suffered had I executed proper judgement."_

_"So you blame yourself?" She clarified._

_"Yes."_

I snapped back to Ella's question, thinking it over for an additional second.

"I mean that I'm not ready to let someone else in. Not after everything." I answered, sniffling a bit.

"That's okay, Max. You're ready when you're ready, but Fang seems like a pretty decent guy, from what I can tell. Giving him a chance won't hurt you." She advised, knowing better than to push me. I took her thoughts into consideration, but more than anything, I just wanted to be alone.

"Anyways, as much fun as sisterly bonding is, it will be considerably less enjoyable after Mom disembowels me for not helping Angel. Thanks for helping though." I stated my gratitude, dismissing her. She definitely did not buy into my lame excuse, but left anyways.

"What kind of a person would I be if I let my fashionably-challenged sister have her way with her closet?" Ella joked, playing along.

I laughed softly. "We're not done with this conversation, by the way." Ella disclosed before exiting my room. "I'll be back."

I rolled my eyes and walked down the hall to Angel's bedroom, eying the brown box of bedding on the bare mattress.

"All right, Angel, let's get this done." I ordered, drawing her attention away from her assortment of stuffed animals. She had posted her hand-written "Snuggle Schedule" over the chest to make sure they all, excluding her favorite teddy bear Celeste, got equal snuggle time. God forbid if she ended up hurting their feelings.

Being with Angel was easy, thoughtless. The only thing she wanted from me was a playmate, not a miracle. She didn't have any expectations, and I couldn't let her down by not recovering fast enough. Angel was the best distraction I had.

She made herself more useful than I thought in regard to her bed, tucking in the corners of sheets and sliding fresh pillowcases over her pillows. Her pink and purple comforter was neatly pressed onto the bed, leaving everything ready for inspection by my mother, the dictator.

"High-five, Ange!" I cooed, feeling the slight sting of Angel's palm slapping mine as hard as she could. I shook it to emphasize her strength, which was far more advanced than any seven-year-old girl I've ever met, and bent down to kiss her on her forehead. Angel became incredibly attached to me since the moment I came home, and she became more like my little baby than my little sister.

"I'm your favorite." Angel giggled, practically reading my mind.

I didn't answer her, didn't have to, and received a massive bear hug before I ventured back to my room.

My phone was once again glowing with a new message from Fang, and I raced to pick it up. My doubts practically vanished, life was easier when I just didn't think about it.

**F: Off duty for the night, u?**

**M: Just finished with Angel, done for now.**

**F: So I have u all to myself?  
**

**M: I guess it's just ur lucky day.**

**F: Guess so. Come outside again, I have another surprise.**

**M: Did u steal another box from me?**

**F: Not this time. Please?**

**M: Be right out.**

I obliged to Fang's request, walking out onto my balcony. My jaw practically dropped as I saw what Fang had done to his exterior extension of his room. The railing was wrapped in white Christmas lights, along with the little patch of roof he had as well. The once bare wooden frame was now draped in a picnic blanket with square pillows scattered throughout it, and two little mats were lined up perfectly parallel to one another. The whole thing made me incredibly jealous.

**M: Way to show me up :/**

**F: Don't worry, we can run into town tomorrow and get stuff for urs too. I'll even help.**

**M: How gentlemanly of u.**

**F: As always :)**

I shivered slightly, the chilling night temperature finally catching up to me. The air must've dropped twenty degrees since the sun went down earlier.

**F: Cold?**

**M: Just a little.**

**F: Go get a jacket, I can wait.**

Fang suggested, taking a seat on one of the stools in front of him. I was in and out of my bedroom in a flash, coming back out onto the deck in an over-sized Coca-Cola sweatshirt.

**M: Much better.**

**F: It better be nice and warm tomorrow in that water :)**

**M: I heard it's freezing!**

**F: U aren't chickening out, are u?**

Was I? There was no way in the seven circles of Hell that I'd be seen in just a mere string bikini bottom, but I supposed I could always wear shorts or something over top. I quickly typed my reply to avoid making my hesitation noticeable.

**M: No way.**

**F: See u then? It's late and this face needs it's beauty sleep.**

**M: Such a diva. But yeah, I guess I'll see u then :)**

**F: Night, Max.  
**

**M: Good night, Fang :)**

My phone's clock only read 10 o'clock, but I had to admit, it had been a _long _day. I was beyond exhausted as I struggled to wash my face and brush my teeth for bed. I practically passed out as soon as my body hit the cushion, finally embracing a nightmare-free slumber. It had been a long time since I had one of those.

* * *

**End note: In case there is still some confusion, I am not James Patterson, *sigh*, nor do I have any rights to any characters associated with the Maximum Ride franchise. This work is strictly recreational and I am sadly not making any money off of it.  
**

**And Fang isn't my creation :(**


	5. Let Me Dunk You

**Happy New Year! 2014 is going to be a good one, I can feel it!**

* * *

Max POV

I actually slept in for the first time in nine months- and wasn't disturbed once by a haunting nightmare. It was a strange feeling to be fully rested and energetic, and when I stretched out my arms and rubbed my eyes open at ten in the morning, Mom was waiting at the door, worried.

"Sweetie, are you feeling okay? You were asleep for awhile, are you sick?" She voiced in concern, bringing the back of her hand to my forehead. I actually formed a genuine smile too.

"No, Mom. I'm great, actually."

"Oh, wonderful! I have some bagels from the market on the kitchen table if you'd like. Ella said to wake you because you guys are supposedly meeting up with the Batchelders in a half hour with Gazzy and Angel, is that right?" Mom asked, rubbing my knee. I think it was confusion plastered on her face, because even before the incident, I had never been so damn _peppy _at such an early hour in the day. Or any hour of the day, for that matter.

"Yeah! Fang, Iggy, and Nudge are meeting us at the beach!" I exclaimed, completely uncharacteristically, and I think I might've given Mom the impression that I was completely high. My smile, however, seemed to be contagious, and it spread across Mom's face as she stood up from my bed.

"I'll see you downstairs in a few?" She asked, waiting for me to nod in compliance before she left.

I took a minute to really stretch out and take my time to climb out of bed, relinquishing the feeling of a genuine night's sleep. I wandered downstairs, scowling at the litter of boxes waiting to be unpacked by yours truly and my band of sidekicks, and ventured into the kitchen. Angel was already dressed and primped, whilst her brother was still a mess- disheveled clothing and bedhead in check. The two of them always resembled the opposite sex of each other, to the point where, before Gazzy hit his recent growth spurt, the two were often mistaken as twins, and yet they are polar opposites. Go figure.

"Hey, bud." I greeted, combing out Gazzy's hair with my fingers to rid him of the wings he had acquired.

"Hey, Max!" Gazzy chimed, shoving another half of a bagel in his mouth without hesitation. If it weren't for that kid's crazy metabolism, he'd reach a new class of obesity.

"Ready for the beach?" I asked, taking a few steps towards Angel. Both children perked up at the mention, their huge blue eyes growing as wide as saucers.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!" Angel shrieked, swinging her legs in beat with her shrills.

"Be ready soon, okay? That means you, Gaz." I instructed, waving my finger like a symphony conductor. Gazzy looked up from his stack of bagels and nodded.

I grabbed a bagel of my own off the plate and ate it like a doughnut, too lazy to bother with cream cheese and such. The last morsel was already stuffed into my mouth by the time I made it to the top of the stairs.

I walked into my room and went straight to my closet, in search of a swimsuit. However, anxiety got to me before I could find it.

What did I think I was doing? Revealing to everybody that I was weak enough to feel the need to harm myself in order to cope with my emotional turmoil? Further proving that nobody- not Fang, nor Ella- could ever love me because I'm incapable of loving myself?

I threw myself onto my bed, accepting my invitation to my personal pity party. Screw the beach, screw everything. This was all my fault, _everything _was my own fucking fault. The incident, my depression, my incapability to pass as a normal human being for just once in my pitiful existence. I'm nothing if not a drain on my family.

"Max? We're leaving in fifteen minutes, and you are– still in your pajamas? Max!" Ella whined, interrupting my shameful bantering.

"I'm not going!" I huffed, face down on my bed. How could I ever had thought this was a good idea? There was no way to go swimming without showing the parts of me that I was ashamed of. I'm all but an ugly, disgusting, horrid, awful, rancid–

"No, no, no, no, no! No excuses, missy! I will drag your ass from here to the beach if I have to!" Ella threatened, cutting my self-hating rant short.

"I'm just not going, okay?"

"Did Fang do something?"

"Of course not! I just don't want to–"

"Don't want to what? Spend time with him?" Ella jumped to conclusions.

"No! I just don't want to be so scantily clad in front of a boy I just met."

"Are you kidding me? You aren't going because you are being _self conscious?_ Oh Max, what am I going to do with you?"

"Look, I have some board shorts that you can wear. They fit like regular shorts, and that way your ass won't completely be on display. I bought them for surfing, but you can totally wear them if you want." Ella offered, desperate to get me to the beach.

"Can I see them?" I asked, figuring if they were conservative enough to cover the three-inch sections of marred skin, identical on both hips, I'd give it a go. I heard her footsteps race down the hall, pause for a moment, then race back.

"Here." She panted, throwing the pair onto my back. I turned to look at them, studying them closely. They were just simple, black shorts made out of aquatic material with a strip of white lining the waistband, and they would cover all evidence of my secret coping mechanism.

"These will do, I guess." I droned, trying not to sound like the shorts had completely made my morning, which they indeed had. They had pulled me out of the worst of my mood swings, at the very least. I couldn't believe that I, Max freaking Martinez, had to rely on clothing to be able to go to the beach. _Pathetic_.

"Now get dressed and be downstairs in five, and no more of this nonsense, okay? You're beautiful, Max, and I'm not just saying that as your sister." She complimented, and I could really tell that she meant it.

However, that didn't mean I believed her. I wasn't beautiful, not even remotely. I was bony and gross, skin clung to my bones too tightly so there weren't any curves to flaunt, not like the ones Ella had. My hair was a washed-out blond, too light to be brown. My skin was pale and pasty, and nothing about me fell under the category of beautiful. I was just an awkward, ugly lump of human parts.

I sighed, throwing on the first bathing suit I found. It was just a plain red bikini, not particularly revealing in the slightest. The bands were maybe an inch thick, and they locked in place behind my back instead of needing to be tied. I slipped on the bottoms without looking, then threw the shorts on over top. I couldn't bear to look at my hips.

I passed by the mirror to get a tank top, darting my eyes away as I did so. The shirt slipped over my head with ease and I hurried out the door, unable to withstand any more of my mind's destruction. The rest of my family would distract me for sure.

All that positive energy I'd woken up with was long gone with no hope of return.

* * *

Fang POV

A thump down the hall shattered my unconscious state. I groaned, rolling over to face the glowing screen of my clock.

10:47

_Shit._

With my heart in my stomach I jumped out of bed, peeling my sweats off and throwing on the swim trunks I had left on the floor for this convenient purpose. I didn't even bother with a shirt- didn't have time- and darted into the bathroom. There was no time to shower, but my hair was an absolute wreck. Bedhead had taken it's toll. No way in Hell would I be seen looking like this.

Thinking fast- and not practically- I dunked my head into the sink, drenching it completely. I threw my head upwards, soaking the bathroom floor to the point of no return, and I realized my mistake instantly when I stepped over to the linen closet. _Bang._ My feet slipped way out from under me, resulting in all six feet of clumsy teenage boy hurling into the shower curtain.

Another crashing sound pursued, followed by many swear words on my part, and none other than Iggy came flying in to my rescue. It was a good thing he was blind.

"The fuck just happened?" Iggy questioned, stepping into the bathroom. I untangled myself from the shower curtain and attempted to stand, wincing at the pain in my leg. That would be a fine bruise in the morning.

"Water got everywhere and I slipped. No big deal." I brushed off, grabbing the hair brush from the counter.

Iggy chuckled lightly. "Recover quickly, we're outta here in five."

"Great." I mumbled, drying my wet locks off with the towel I had originally failed to grab. After brushing my teeth and deeming my hair acceptable I entered the kitchen, shoving a cold slice of last night's pizza down my throat. Jeb desperately needed to go food shopping.

"Nudge! Get down here or we are leaving without you!" I hollered, pizza still in my mouth. Manners are not my forte.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Nudge screamed, and surely enough, she raced to the bottom of the stairs. Iggy appeared from the living room after turning off the television- surprise, surprise- and us three were ready to walk out the door with two minutes to spare.

We were down at the water's edge in a matter of seconds, and I could see a glimpse of the Martinez family through their screen door. It looked like sunscreen was being fumigated throughout the house, and surely enough the boy- Gazzy- came out choking dramatically, his younger sister on his tail. Nudge sprinted up the beach to greet them, pulling Angel into a hug like they'd been apart for months.

Ella stepped out next, pulling somebody out with her.

_Max._

The pair walked slowly down to the shore, taking their time as they gazed at the younger kids chasing each other to the waves. Gazzy and Nudge threw Angel in, receiving shrieks and bellows, and a splashing war erupted.

"Hey." Max greeted, taking my mind away from the playfulness of Nudge and the Martinez children.

"Hey." I replied, looking up to meet her gaze. Ella was saying something to Iggy, but it was muted by the beautiful girl in front of me. Her tanned shoulders were bare in the presence of her ribbed tank top, which hung to her body perfectly. Strings belonging to a red bikini top were secured around her neck, and a nice hint of rouge on her cheeks complemented the swim suit appropriately.

"Are we going in the water or are you just going to keep staring at me?" Max joked, biting her lip irresistibly.

I gave her a slight smirk. "Race you." I challenged, running into the foaming waves without allotting her a second to react.

"Wait!" Max wailed, chucking off her tank top and following my lead. Pity for her I was already there.

"I win." I gloated, watching her walk timidly into the icy water. They weren't kidding when they said how cold it was. Goosebumps formed on Max's body as more and more of her long, lean legs were covered by salt water. She halted when the water rose to her knees, shivering slightly. Her arms were folded tightly across her chest in attempt to warm herself up, obstructing my view of most of her upper torso.

"You cheated! You had a head start!" Max defended, her teeth chattering slightly. I closed the space between us by a few more inches.

"Maybe so." I teased, watching Max's eyebrows furrow. "Cold?"

"Mhm." Max replied, rubbing her lips together.

"They say there is an easy way to get warmed up in here quickly." I responded, setting up my trap. Max raised an eyebrow.

"Going under." I stated, throwing Max's thin figure over my shoulder. She fought back, as I expected, but it didn't stop me from hurling both of us into the oncoming wave. The sudden impact of cool water chilled my bones, and Max's body heat barely did a thing. We resurfaced quickly, Max still buried deeply in my arms. The slap from her I was expecting followed seconds later.

"Fang! What the Hell was that for?" Max hollered, not making an attempt to escape from my clutch around her body.

"Are you still cold?" I asked, trying to lower her level of anger.

"That's not the poi–"

"Are you still cold?" I cut her off, repeating myself. Her body was no longer shaking, and though she had too much pride to downright admit it, my juvenile prank had done her well.

"No–" She pouted, releasing herself from my arms. The water stopped right at her shoulders as she buried her feet into the sandy ocean floor.

"Was that really so hard, Max?" I teased, deeming that Max while flustered and angry was one of the hottest things I'd ever seen.

"I will get revenge." Max threatened, glaring at me. I let out a low chuckle.

"How bad is it in there?" Ella hollered from the sand, Iggy just a foot behind her.

"It's wonderful in here, Ella! Just run right on in, it'll warm up instantly!" Max lied, shooting me a knowing glance. Ella, being completely naive, followed Max's instructions. She sprinted full speed into a crashing wave, diving under the white peaks. But when she surfaced, all Hell broke loose.

"Oh. My. God. Max! I hate you!" Ella shrieked, her teeth chattering. Both Max and I laughed, and Max's rage towards me seemed to diminish. Ella's rage, however, only escalated, and by the look on her face that I had already seen Max wear a minute prior, I could see how the two were related.

"Hey!" Iggy interrupted, waving his hands. "Blind guy talking. Somebody mind helping me in so I don't get knocked out by a wave?" He asked, not ashamed about his disability. I rolled my eyes as Ella volunteered, knowing well and clear that Iggy could have found his way into the ocean by himself_ in his sleep_. It was one of his cards played to have Ella swooning over him, however desperate it may seem.

It worked, nevertheless, and the blind bastard was guided over to us with Ella's arms tightly around him.

"The water is cold as Hell." Iggy complained.

"Hell is actually rather warm, Ig. I'd know, I'm from there." I rebutted, hearing Max giggle beside me.

"Where are the kiddies?" He asked, and I shrugged my shoulders, well aware that he couldn't see it.

"Gaz? Ange? Nudge? Where are you guys?" Max called, scanning the coast for the three little musketeers.

I heard a far voice replying, but it was too muffled for me to understand.

"What?" Max shouted back, clearly not understanding it either.

"It was Nudge. She said they were by the rocks, and asked us to come to them." Iggy answered for our sister, hearing every word with his enhanced aural capabilities.

"Thanks." Max replied, starting to wade towards the cluster of large rocks on the east side of the beach. We all followed her, Iggy with Ella's "much needed" guidance, and found the younger trio on the tallest of the group of rocks.

"Watch this!" Gazzy commanded, running full speed off the twenty-some foot rock and cannon-balling into the water.

"Careful!" Ella worried, clenching her jaw. Surely enough, the little blond boy resurfaced in the matter of seconds, treading water.

"That was awesome!" His little sister cooed, too nervous to do the same. Instead, her and Nudge sat cross-legged at the top of the cliff and pushed around the piles of sand into what resembled castles.

I looked up to see Max seated on the nearest rock, one not nearly as tall as the one her brother had jumped off of. I followed her up there, turning to see Ella and Iggy wandering to the beach. Iggy had never really loved the water to begin with. He fell into a swimming pool when he was three, and though he wasn't injured whatsoever, it traumatized the poor kid.

"I'm hungry." Max announced, shifting her body to face me.

"Me too." I agreed, my stomach not satisfied by that lone slice of leftover pizza.

Max swiftly persuaded the younger kids to leave the ocean for food, and there were no arguments from Iggy and Ella when asked the same. They were already on land to begin with. The problem was, between both of our houses, we wouldn't even have enough food to scrape together a sandwich.

"The town is only really a mile from here." Ella stated nonchalantly, making the realization for herself that we'd need to go elsewhere for some grub.

"I mean, we could walk there, in theory. I'd have to ask Mom first." Max replied, genuinely considering it. It wasn't the worst idea I'd ever heard.

"How about this," I started to propose, feeding off the previous two statements. "You guys go home and ask your mom if it'd be alright to walk into town with us. The three of us will go do the same, and in five minutes, if all goes well, we meet in the alley between our two houses. Sound good?"

"Sounds good to me." Max replied, checking with her younger siblings. Everyone reacted well to my proposal, and surely enough, in exactly four minutes, we were all ready to go. Jeb had given me forty dollars, and I spied a fifty peeking out of Max's back pocket. Not that I was checking out her ass, of course.

There was a little sidewalk path parallel with our long driveway that conveniently led us right to the edge of town in under ten minutes.

"Why don't we walk around for a minute before deciding where to eat?" Max suggested. We all unanimously agreed.

I walked closely next to Max up front as Ella and Iggy absently fumbled behind. Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel wavered in the back, becoming distracted by the most miniscule of things. Like the surfboards in the display windows, for example.

The town square itself was merely four streets full of little boutiques and restaurants, many of which were Mexican. The US-Mexican border was only a little ways down the road, and from some of the beaches you could actually see the Mexican side. There was also one big professional building, where Max informed me her mother's veterinarian practice was opening.

A quarter of an hour passed and we'd basically seen the gist of the town.

"What looks good?" Max asked me, stopping in her tracks. She was waiting for the rest to catch up, as we had walked at a much faster pace.

"There was that Mexican restaurant on that first street, and the little sandwich place two stores down from it. Both sound fine." I answered, also remembering the gelato place in between the two.

"We'll ask the rest, both are fine with me as well." Max replied. I nodded, following her in the direction of our siblings. They all gathered around us.

"You have two choices: Mexican food or sandwich shop. Take your pick." Max stated, chaos ensuing a second later.

"Mexican!" Iggy and Gazzy loudly exclaimed at the same time.

"Sandwiches!" Angel cooed. Ella and Nudge's reply got slurred together into what sounded like a foreign European language.

Arguments erupted, and Max caught my eyes in what seemed to me as her asking me what to do. I winked at her, then brought my two pinkies to my lips and let out a deafening whistle.

"Impressive." Max muttered, elbowing me playfully in the arm before addressing the group of kids in front of her.

"We can pick up both, it's not the end of the world." Max said, rolling her eyes. "Fang and I have the cash anyhow, so you best all behave."

"Sorry." Gazzy muttered, looking at his feet.

"If you want Mexican, raise your hand." Max instructed, mentally grouping Iggy, Gazzy, and Ella together.

"All right. Sandwiches?" Nudge and Angel's hands shot up.

"What do you want?" I whispered into Max's ear.

"I'm in a taco mood. Do you mind taking the girls? I can pick you up something if you'd like." She offered as the kids watched, waiting for us to go.

"No, I'm craving a BLT. I'll take Nudge and Angel."

"Cool. Meet up with me at one of the those picnic tables?" She asked, pointing to a group of wooden tables in front of the gelato place. I nodded.

"Amigos with me, vámonos!" She instructed, wavering her siblings and Iggy to follow her. Once again, Iggy was Ella's lapdog as she carted him into the restaurant, probably about to read him the menu while tying his shoelaces.

"My two, let's go." I smiled, gently combing Nudge's hair. She always complained about how curly and unruly it was, and how she dreamed of straight hair, but it was all nonsense. I thought her mane suited her well.

The sandwich shop was practically empty as we entered it, spare the two people working there and a family of four eating together at one of the tables inside. The three of us ordered, I paid, and we were sitting quietly at a picnic table within five minutes.

Max and the others appeared maybe two minutes later, and we all chowed down on our lunches in relative silence. The rest of the afternoon passed by, and around four we parted our ways and entered our respective houses. I slipped into my bedroom and kicked back on my futon, reflecting on my day with Max. She had looked so strikingly hot in that bikini, and the way that she was pushed up against my chest when I threw her into that wave... it gave a guy something to fantasize about during his "private time", to say the least.

Max was my dream girl, but more than anything I wanted her to be more than just a dream. So I have the solution; I'm going to ask her out.

_Tomorrow_.

* * *

**Sorry (am I though?) for the cliff-hanger! Put your predictions for the next chapter in the review box and see how close you are next Friday!**

**Fly on!**


	6. Let Me Date You

**I totally forgot reviewers of the week last Friday! I'm still on break and I guess my mind has gone fuzzy.**

**Reviewers of this (and last) week:**

desperatelyobvious **and **spiritofthedragon15

**And as always, your reviews really do mean the world to me. Even though I have dedicated myself to updating every Friday, and so far have stuck to it, every review I get is motivation to work harder and longer on each chapter. Thank you for everybody who contributed to that! I hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

Fang POV

I was going to do it. I was going to ask Max out.

_After_ I consulted Iggy.

It was rather early in the morning, at least for me, but Iggy is and has always been an early riser. I walked quietly to his room, careful about not waking my cranky sister, and turned his knob slowly. Upon entering the room, I was pleased to find Iggy awake on his bed, listening to his music. He lifted his head to acknowledge my presence. Quiet as I was, it was never quiet enough to get past Iggy.

"What can I do for you?" Iggy asked, sliding his headphones around his neck. I slumped into a chair beside his bed and answered his question.

"I'm going to ask Max out." I blurted, studying his face for a reaction. I expected him to laugh and tell me how way out of my league she was, though he couldn't see her amazing physical attributes. Instead, however, he was relatively civil.

"Great. Why are you telling me?" He asked in a monotone voice, upon which had zero enthusiasm behind it. I did say _relatively _civil. Distasteful interest is better than hostile put-downs in my book.

"Because, asshole, Max isn't like the other girls I've dated."

"She has a dick?" Iggy interrupted.

"No." I grunted harshly.

"Then what?"

"She is just– different."

"Thanks for being specific." Iggy replied sarcastically, twirling the chord of his headphones around his finger as if he was daring me to be more interesting than the heavy metal music drumming from his iPod.

"Look, I like her a lot, and I don't want to mess this up." I admitted. I'd only have one chance to get this right.

"So tell her that. Girls like that stuff."

"Is it really that easy?" I questioned incredulously. I mean sure, I've asked a girl out before, but it was always by the works of some terribly overused pickup line.

"Yeah, moron, it is. Now grow a pair and don't come back in here until you have a date."

"All right. Thanks." I replied, ending our conversation, or so I thought.

"And Fang?" Iggy added. "Good luck."

With that I left his room, hoping I wouldn't need luck to get a girl. _The_ girl. _Max_.

I grabbed my phone off its charger on my wall, shooting her a text message. It was almost nine o'clock, so I didn't think it was completely immoral to be texting at that point in the morning.

**F: U awake?**

I asked, waiting for her to, hopefully, respond with a yes. A few minutes later my phone buzzed.

**M: I am now.**

**F: Oops. Sorry.  
**

**M: I'm kidding, I've been up since 8. Wats up?**

**F: Meet me outside?**

**M: Y?**

**F: I want to ask u something.**

**M: K. Gimme a few minutes to get dressed.**

I fist bumped the air, getting dressed appropriately myself. Baggy sweatpants and an old, stained, and ripped t-shirt is not my best look. Instead I opted for a better fitting pair of black shorts and an intact t-shirt. Presentation is everything.

I ventured into the bathroom and went through my morning routine; I brushed my teeth, splashed my face, combed out my hair, and was out the door within three minutes.

I nervously stood in the alleyway between Max's house and mine with my hands shoved in my pockets. This was taking every last ounce of courage I had in me.

She tiptoed out the door a good five minutes later, clad in plain shorts and a loose t-shirt, her hair pulled back in an elastic.

"Hey." She smiled at me, closing the door behind her silently. "My mom went out to do some shopping, since she starts work tomorrow, and every one else is asleep." She informed me, taking a few steps in my direction.

"I think Nudge and Jeb are still out cold too." I smirked.

"So you wanted to ask me something?" Max idled, rocking on her heels.

"Yeah, I did." I swallowed, my face feeling hot. I was going to do this, I had to do this. Iggy would take away my man card if I didn't and forever disgrace me.

"Do you per chance want to go grab some gelato with me later?" I asked, finding Italian custard a safe choice.

"Just the two of us?" Max asked, meeting my gaze. I nodded.

"Like a date?" She interrogated, playing off my uncomfortableness.

"Yes. A date." I verified, anxious as Hell.

"Sure. Pick me up at seven?" My heart pumped a little faster. She said yes. _Max actually said yes_.

"I don't have a car." I chuckled, knowing what she meant initially.

"I meant to walk with me there, stupid."

"I know."

"See you then?" Max confirmed, batting her eyelashes for emphasis.

"Mhm." I hummed, awkwardly waiting for her to turn around first.

"Cool. Seven. Bye." Max stuttered, rotating on her heel to face the door. When her figure disappeared inside her house I forcefully brought my open palm to my face, scolding myself for my lack of charisma. But when push came to shove, my awkward date proposal had been successful.

I had a date with Max.

* * *

Max POV

I had a date with Fang.

It was just a casual ice cream date, more of a test than anything, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited. I mean sure, I had my quarrels about dating, but I figured that I would take Ella's advice and give Fang a chance. Besides, if he tried anything funny, I'd kick his scrawny ass.

I knew Ella was still asleep, and she'd murder me for awakening her, but she would no doubt forgive me after learning the reason why. Ella was a girly girl, and the male species fell right in her category of expertise.

I made it up to her room and shook her awake, catching a low groan and a "fuck you, go away." somewhere in the mix. Ella also had the mouth of a sailor.

"No. I have news." I stated.

"Can it wait?" Ella groaned, rubbing her eyes.

"No."

"Fine. Spill." She surrendered, sitting upright in her bed.

"Fang asked me out."

"You better have said yes, because if you didn't, I will."

"I said yes."

"Who, what, when, where, how? Wait, I know the who, but shoot." Ella rapidly spit-balled, as wide awake as she'd be if she had just downed four cups of coffee.

"Gelato, tonight at seven. He texted me to meet him outside and–"

"You have a date!" Ella squealed, pulling me onto her bed.

"We've established this already." I chuckled, barely able to breathe in the tight grip of my sister.

"I'll make sure you look presentable. Be ready for primping at five."

"You need two hours?" I whined. I knew better than to say no to Ella, however painful the contrary might be.

"Of course! Now go so I can be rested enough!" She shooed me off, flipping herself back onto her stomach. Fun fact, everybody in my family either slept on their stomachs or sides.

I rolled my eyes and exited her room, mentally reviewing the list of chores I needed to plow through before the day's end. Mom was very specific. I had to finish unpacking my room, put away the rest of the dishes, and assist Gazzy and Angel with their bathroom. All in all, it was a good couple of hours of labor to consume my mind.

Two hours passed and Mom arrived back home, carrying in grocery packages by the half dozen.

"Children! Packages!" She shouted, dropping a few bags and her purse onto the kitchen counter. She looked up to see that I had put away the dishes as she asked, smiled at me, then screamed again.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Gazzy's voice echoed throughout the house. Surely enough, he and his two sisters appeared from the staircase and walked out the door to grab the packages of food, remaining barefoot. I stayed inside with Mom, sorting the food into it's respective place.

Mom had also picked up a pizza for lunch, and after all was unpacked, we ate our first meal in the new house on plates that weren't plastic.

"Max has a date!" Angel sang in between bites, smiling evilly. How the Hell did she even find that out?

"I–" I hesitated. Not a good move in my household.

"Max and Fang, sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g." Gazzy taunted, laughing along with his little sister. Ella shrugged her shoulders apologetically. _Snitch._

"You have a date, Max?" Mom asked, her face lighting up as if the news had made her day.

"Fang asked me out for gelato tonight, that's all." I down-played, not wanting my romantic life, however slim, completely public to my family.

"Sweetie, that's great!" Mom exclaimed. I didn't reply. At least now I wouldn't have to ask her for permission to go.

I approached my back-stabbing sister after our lovely family meal on why she had gossiped with my adolescent siblings over my dating life, but she defended herself by saying that Angel had heard it all. Subsequently, Angel had also told Gazzy. Kudos for me.

On the bright side, when I checked out Angel and Gazzy's bathroom it was already unpacked, sparing me from doing it myself. All I had left to finish was my own room, and there was barely anything left to be unpacked. Just a few books and random ornaments.

Five o'clock rolled by and I unenthusiastically dragged myself into Ella's room. She looked mildly frustrated when she saw me.

"You aren't showered?" She criticized, shaking her head.

"I didn't know that was a requirement." I defended. Ella grunted.

"Just hop in while I pick out your outfit. Be quick." She instructed.

I obliged, scared to see the outcome if I didn't. I never really saw the appeal to super long showers in the first place, maybe because I was easily bored, and I didn't take long to get clean. You could eat off me.

Scratch that, it was weird.

I wrapped a towel around me and entered my bedroom, studying the outfit Ella had selected. She had a pair of white jeans sprawled out in the middle of my bed, ones that I did not own myself. White and I don't get along, as I tend to stain things. Next to the pants was a loose tank top adorned with lace, and the thin straps were braided. Again, not from my closet. The only thing that I actually recognized were my grey converse sneakers, and those were placed by the foot of my bed.

"You need a strapless bra with that shirt. Do you have one?" Ella asked. She would've offered up one of her own, but our chests aren't exactly the same size anymore. Just another reminder of the horrors I had faced. I couldn't even fill half of one of her bras.

"I know I have one somewhere." I muttered, fishing through a drawer until I found it.

"Great. Get dressed and meet me in my room when you're done."

"Will do." I responded, waiting to drop my towel until she shut my door. I needed a belt around the jeans, but other than that, the outfit fit great. I looked incredibly feminine, sure, but if Ella said it looked good then I'd believe her. She knew her stuff.

I looped the belt around my waist and bravely strutted to Ella's lair, bracing myself for torture on the cosmetic level. Ella _never_ showed any mercy. Her station was awaiting my arrival, and she sat me down onto her chair instantly, tools in hand. She might need to tie me down.

"Max, do you even attempt to do your eyebrows?" Ella snarled, pulling my skin in numerous directions. She knew as well as I did that I did no such thing.

Let the plucking begin.

It took Ella _ten_ painstaking minutes to tame and shape my brows, and when she showed me the finished product, I didn't even see a difference. All I knew was that it hurt like Hell.

"Max, your hair!" Ella exclaimed, gritting her teeth at all the knots. She started to brush, catching every knot in my tangled mane.

"I can brush it myself, you know." I huffed, wincing at the painful pulling of my knotted strands.

"No. Sit." Ella barked, trying to be more gentle. She wasn't _completely _heartless.

"Hand me the blow dryer." Ella instructed, juggling bottles of products in her hands. I did as she asked.

Blow drying turned out to be relatively painless, to my approval, as was flat ironing. It was just a long time for me to sit still in one place. Ella warned me that if I so much as wiggled a nanometer she'd burn my ear off.

Forty minutes was left on the clock as Ella started my makeup, painting my face with a flesh-toned liquid. Two or three layers later she commenced with the bronzer, educating me on contouring techniques.

Blush, eye shadow, liner, mascara, lip gloss- it was all plastered onto my face. I felt like I was wearing a mask, and Ella wasn't skipping any corners whatsoever. I guessed her finishing touches were done when she spun me around to face the mirror, pushing my hair in front of my shoulders.

"I look–" I started to observe, slightly baffled by my transformation.

"_Hot_." Ella completed my sentence.

Ella knew better than to go over-the-top with me, and everything regarding my face looked natural. All the eye shadows were a shade of varying tones of light brown, the eye liner was merely a thin line highlighting my lengthened lashes, and the lip gloss was a subtle pink. _No sparkles_.

"Thanks." I humbly remarked, physically prepped for my date.

"Just have fun." Ella giggled, adding a "but not too much fun" subtly as I got up to leave. Fang would be picking me up in ten minutes, so I had best get a move on it. Don't want to keep the guy waiting.

Mom was expecting me downstairs, handing me five dollars and kissing me on the cheek.

"Enjoy yourself, sweetie." She advised, hugging me tightly. It was as if she was telling me everything that I needed to know, that I was doing the right thing by agreeing to go on this date. That Fang was a genuine guy, and that I wouldn't get hurt.

Because I was scared.

I was terrified of every detail that could go wrong, but Mom knew that. She knew I knew she knew that, and wanted me to receive a reassuring gesture before facing my fears head-on. It was exactly what I needed.

"Thank you." I smiled, drying my moist eyes. Ella did not spend that long on my appearance for me to look like a raccoon.

"I think he's here." Mom squealed, pointing to the glass door. There Fang was, clad in dark jeans and a black t-shirt. He was smiling, a rarity on his part, and I couldn't resist smiling myself. Everything around me seemed to fade as I took steps towards him, the world slowing as my mind spun. All my insecurities, my doubts, my fears- they seemed to have miraculously diminished.

I opened the door to greet him, laughing as he made a fool of himself. He raised his eyebrows in the corniest way possible, curtsied at me, then brought my hand to his lips and planted a kiss. Fang was kind of adorable.

"Ready, madame?" Fang asked, lifting an invisible hat off his head.

"Why of course, good sir." I played along, following him to the side path that led to town.

"You look beautiful." He complimented, securing one of my hands in his as we walked beside each other.

"As do you." I chuckled, biting my lip. Fang smirked.

"What's your favorite color?" Fang asked out of the blue, introducing the first date questionnaire after a moment of pause.

"Green."

"Green?" Fang repeated in question.

"Yeah, green. It's peaceful, quiet." Quite the poet I am.

"I see." Fang remarked.

"You?"

"Black."

"That's not a color." I snidely rebutted.

"Sure it is."

"No, black as a definition is the absence of color, therefore not a color itself." I explained. I had slid by freshman year Physics class well enough to remember the basics of light rays and whatnot.

"Smart, huh?" Fang observed to himself, though making a point for it to be loud enough for my ears to catch.

"Favorite food?" I questioned, following his lead.

"That's like asking a mother to pick a favorite child." He joked, acting as if the question had pained him.

"You?" Fang deflected.

"Easy. Chocolate chip cookies, fresh from the oven." I answered, mentally counting all of the times I have burnt my tongue after shoving one in my mouth right off the tray from the oven. Mom stopped scolding me after the umpteenth time, saying that if I didn't learn the first time I'd never learn at all. She was correct, I never learned.

"First word?"

"No"

"Your first word was 'no'?" Fang clarified.

"Apparently. What was yours?"

"Oops." Fang chuckled, shaking his head.

We carried on with our ice-breaker questions for a few minutes before the gelato place came into view, and our get-to-know-you conversations ceased. The store was heavily air conditioned and smelled of a sickeningly sweet mix of fruit and caramel that could give anybody a cavity. Flavors were written neatly on a chalkboard, and there were maybe twenty or so to choose from.

"What looks good?" Fang asked, draping his hand over my shoulder.

"Dulche de leche." I practically moaned, trying to remain drool-free.

"Next." One of the employees announced, and Fang stepped up to place our order.

"One dulche de leche for the lady," Fang looked at me and winked, "and one black cherry, please."

"That'll be $6.59." The man stated, and Fang handed him a ten.

"Fang, you don't have to pay for mine."

"I asked you on a date, I'll pay the price." Fang joked, receiving the two gelatos from a female worker. He thanked her and maneuvered his way to a table, sliding my sweet caramel dream across to me.

The rest of the date was history, and not the kind full of bloody battles with casualties. This was quite the opposite. Fang and I took the long way home, neither of us wanting to part from the other, and we ended up walking along the beach. It was rather dark, but the moon lit the way. I'm also a notorious carrot eater, thus my night vision is one to be envied.

Our houses were quickly coming into view, and with our prolonged hesitation to actually make our way back, Fang pulled me behind a cluster of rocks and pressed his lips to mine. I was puddy in his hands as the kiss persisted, finding a rhythm that was both slow and romantic. We gradually stumbled backwards until I was pressed against the smooth edge of a boulder, Fang gently pushing his body closer to mine. His heat radiated through my veins, and combined with the magma my heart was pumping, warmth pleasantly contrasted the night's chill, the warmth created solely by Fang.

The kiss was so good it stole away both of our breaths, and we had to separate to avoid passing out from oxygen deprivation. I stood there panting, inches from Fang, my lips longing to once again be joined with his. He seemed to share the same desires, bringing his lips back to mine. His hands hooked my legs around his waist as he hoisted me up, no longer having to lean down to my height; Fang had at least half a foot on me. Using the rock as support, our lips continued their frenzy, finally ceasing after a few minutes.

"We should head back." I suggested, my breathing still heavy as I pulled away. I sensed that the innocent kiss would soon evolve into something more, and I was miles away from ready for that. Fang, though seemingly disappointed that I broke our lips' embrace, agreed, and proceeded to escort me home.

The kiss was the only thing my mind could wrap around for the minute stroll back to our houses, and the concentrated look on Fang's face said the same. Our hands were intertwined as well, and we walked in tempo with one another, our arms swinging in sync with our steps.

"I had a great time tonight." I confessed as Fang stood on my doorstep, waiting for me to slip inside.

"Me too." He whispered, brushing my hair behind my ear. Before I knew it his lips were back on mine, sealing our night with a good-bye kiss.

"Good night." Fang bid me farewell, opening the door for me. I stood on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek, wishing him good night as well before disappearing into my house.

And boy, what a good night it was.

* * *

**There you have it- the first Fax moment! Also, fun fact about me, my first word was "no". My parents were competitively trying to make my first word be "momma" or "dadda", respectively, and weren't all that pleased when it turned out to be "no". It was the only word I spoke for an entire month. What were your guys' first words? **


	7. Let Me Kiss You

**I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my grandfather. He's been diagnosed with late-stage colon cancer and is currently fighting it with everything he has. He's the one that really taught me how to write and has been improving my skills since the first grade. Thank you, grandaddy, I owe every syllable to you.**

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**Reviewers of the Week:**

spiritofthedragon15 **and **WhatIsLovee

**You guys know that I love the rest of you just as much! I hope you like this chapter!**

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**TRIGGER WARNING: FAINT MENTION OF RAPE (nothing graphic or explicit)  
**

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Max POV

Two amazing, unforgettable weeks have passed since my first date with Fang. We've spent every day together, doing things varying from sunbathing in the sand to learning how to surf. Fang had really showed me up in that activity.

All seven of us had gotten a group lesson with a private instructor and rented boards, driving to the most prestigious beach on the coast for surfing. Squeezing on a wetsuit was not my cup of tea, but nevertheless it kept me warmer than any normal bathing suit would. Angel almost gave the instructor, Zac, a heart attack when she fell off her board and remained underwater for a good two minutes, showcasing her incredible lung capacity. She explained to him that she was having a tea party with a school of fish, and not drowning, when she resurfaced.

Fang, the little show-off, managed to stand on his first try, crediting his snowboarding background to his early success. Nudge and Ella got the hang of it quickly as well, and though Iggy had a hard time balancing, he could tell when the big waves were coming, a major skill any surfer needs according to Zac. Angel too became well adjusted to riding the waves, leaving Gaz and I the failures of the crew.

"It's not for everybody." Zac reassured, once again grimacing as Gazzy tumbled into the white tips of a passing wave. Fang rolled his eyes and paddled his board next to mine, offering his perspective.

"Don't over think it. You will know the right time to stand up, so just enjoy the ride." He advised, flashing me one of his notorious smiles. According to Nudge, he only wore one when I was around.

We only had the boards for the hour, but in the end I did manage to ride the waves on my feet, and not my ass, on a few occasions. Gazzy got lucky once, but lost his balance after a matter of seconds. Surfing was definitely not his sport.

As a group we hang out a lot during the day, and Gazzy and Iggy have formed some atypical bond. Both boys have a knack for trouble and a love of explosives, and with Iggy's chemistry background, they have ruined two alarm clocks, a television remote, a pair of shoes, and our relationship with the La Jolla fire department.

Nudge and Ella have also clicked over fashion, and both of them have tried countless times to get me to agree to a makeover. Nudge has these Bambi eyes that she bats at me when she wants her way, and it turns out that they're my downfall. That downfall ended with my nails painted a horrid lavender, my hair in some ridiculously complicated up-do, and my wardrobe choices heavily criticized. Not my ideal activity.

Nevertheless, the Martinez-Batchelder clique is practically inseparable at all times, and Jeb and Mom have to force us apart when it gets dark. The two adults have also grown close, not in a romantic way of any sort, but seem to find comfort in each other's presence. When they're around each other, they act like the oldest of friends.

Iggy and Ella are another story. Fang's brother took after his example and asked Ella out last week, and since then their level of PDA has been through the roof. I'm happy for them, of course, but walking into the living room while my sister's tongue is down my boyfriend's brother's throat is beyond awkward. Ella calls me a prude whenever I scold her for it, but it's really in _all _of our best interests that she and Blondie get a room.

And then comes me and Fang. Apart from hanging out together with both of our families present, we've managed four dates, excluding the first. He's treated me to one fabulous dinner, and being the feminist that I am, I've treated him to one as well. Date number three was the cliché movie date, filled with buttery popcorn and kissing in the movie theater. PG-rated, of course. Date four was by far my favorite, as it consisted of chocolate chip cookies baked by Iggy, and boy can that kid cook, and snuggling with Fang on his roof. There was some sort of meteor shower that night, and Fang and I just laid down on our backs staring at the night's sky, making wishes on fallen stars. My perfect night.

Not all nights were as perfect, however, as some were littered with horrifying flashbacks. And sadly, most were triggered by my favorite Batchelder.

We were in Fang's room with the door wide open, as requested by Jeb, binge-watching some crime show on Fang's laptop. It was going great; we had this game where we'd bet on the murderer ten minutes into the episode and whoever got it correct won. We both missed the first one, as there was some unexpected, irrational plot twist that only Hollywood could think up halfway into the episode, but Fang guessed the baker's son in second correctly and I accurately predicted the third. We were watching the fourth as a tie-breaker, but the story of the victim was all too familiar.

Kidnap. Rape. Assault. Sixteen-year-old girl missing for over a month. Sure, in the end it was a happy ending, but it triggered the memories that I've been trying to incinerate from my mind for months.

_"Stop fighting me, Maxie, you know you want this." Dylan asserted, stripping me bare. My mouth was taped to keep me silent, but the muffled shrieks were enough to let him know that this was exactly the opposite of what I wanted._

_"I saw you gawking at me at the party. I saw the lust in your eyes." He falsely recounted, forcefully stripping me of the evidence of my virginity as he intruded my most private of regions. The only thing to be seen in my eyes were tears, but that only seemed to turn him on more. He mistook my cries of agony as those of pleasure, finishing himself off in a matter of minutes. _

_"Ah, Maxie. That was nice." He panted as he pulled out, leaving the used condom in my view so it could torture me throughout the night._

"Max? You okay?" Fang shook me, pulling me back into the present. I noticed that I was trembling, but thankfully Fang assumed I was just cold and got up to get me a blanket.

"Yeah. Fine." I lied, my mind fuzzy for the rest of the evening. Nightmares haunted my sleep that night, and I tossed and turned in my bed, waking up as restless as I was when I first lied down.

I could leave behind my old house and my old life, but my problems would follow me to the end of the Earth. More accurately, they'd follow me _to the grave._

* * *

Fang POV

_Max_. She's the first thing my mind jumps to when I wake and the last thing it settles on when I drift to sleep. Blond hair the color of the sand and eyes the color of chocolate, she's the most beautiful girl I've ever laid eyes on. And she's mine.

Our neighborly clique is always together, sure, but it's those scarce moments that we steal for ourselves that fuels our relationship. Max hates PDA, unlike our handsy siblings, but when the rest are occupied and we manage to slip away, it's like nothing I've ever experienced before.

Ella advised me not too long ago to take things slow with her sister, as things haven't gone her way in the past, but I can't help but pull Max into closets, corners, caves, you name it, and kiss her like it's the only thing keeping me alive. Call it the raging hormones of a celibate teenage boy, but I can't get enough of the intoxication of her lips.

My hands wander up and down her back, always respecting her boundaries by staying above her waist, as she melts herself into the kiss. Her hands mess up my hair, leaving behind evidence of our actions, one hand usually looping around my shoulder. The encounter is brief, maybe five minutes at the most, before she pulls away, always leaving me wanting more.

She slips out and returns to the others, blending in like she was never absent.

This afternoon that consisted of her silently taking a seat on the sofa in her living room next to Angel. The youngest of the seven of us and her older brother had learned this morning that Nudge had never seen any of the Home Alone movies, and made it their mission to change that. Iggy and Ella were upstairs, presumably up to no good, leaving me alone and aroused in the laundry room of Max's house.

I took a few minutes to collect myself and mentally deflate the tent between my legs, a skill mastered after years of terrible incidents, and joined Max on the couch, amused by the classic comedy.

After dinner, Max and I decided to reside in her bedroom, innocently, of course, and Max was sprawled over my chest, staring at the ceiling.

"Why'd you choose the name Fang?" she asked idly.

"I was three, don't hold it against me." I defended.

"No, really. I'm curious."

"I liked vampires at the time. Dracula was my role model." I chuckled, recalling the faint memories of my toddler self.

"What's your real name, beyond 'Nick'?"

"According to my birth certificate, I'm Nicholas Ride, but after Jeb adopted me my legal name became Nick Batchelder." I answered, twirling a lock of her hair in my fingers.

"Fang is a much cooler name." She commented.

"Your turn. What's Max short for?" I questioned. My money was on Maxine.

"Oh god, not that. I swear my parents were high when they named me." Max covered her face with her hands. She had said parents, but I didn't press on that expression. Her father was clearly out of the picture one way or another.

"You don't get off that easy," I grinned. "_S__pill_."

"Don't laugh."

"I won't. Promise."

"Max is short for Maximum." She grimaced.

"It's not _that_ bad." I added.

"Yes it is." She retorted. I chuckled, pulling her closer to me.

"I think it's cute." I admitted, pushing her hair out of her face.

"I think you're cute." I continued, bringing my lips to hers. She rolled on top of me, straddling my stomach. My hands rested on her lower back, drawing lazy circles, and they started to wander to her hips.

Max froze.

"Was that too–" Max shook her head. She looked nervous, like I was about to call her out on her darkest secret. Maybe I was. Curiously, I pressed her, trying to figure out what I had done wrong.

"You're hiding something." I commented, stroking Max's cheek. I could see the glimpses of pain behind her eyes, the ones I've obliviously ignored as they flared up on occasion, and I knew there was something settled deep inside of her, eating it's way out. I wanted to help her; I _needed _to help her. I couldn't see my Max hurting.

"I'm not." She denied, not even close to fooling anybody.

"You don't have to keep anything from me, Max." I comforted, feeling her shift. I wanted to be there for her about anything.

"Just drop it, Fang." Max requested, her voice catching on my name.

"Max–"

"I said drop it!" She hollered, covering her mouth after realizing the tone and volume at which she said it.

"I'm sorry." She whispered over and over again, starting to tremble. Tears threatened to spill down her face. What the Hell did I just do? I shouldn't have pushed her; I shouldn't have put her in this situation. Whatever she's keeping, _if _she's even keeping anything, she'll tell me if and when she decides to.

"No, Max–" I tried to apologize, but she wouldn't hear any of it.

"Go." She cut me off, wiping her eyes.

"I'm–" I tried again, but she cut me off once more.

"Please." She sounded desperate. As much as it killed me to leave her room, I did, watching in remorse as Max's body folded into a ball.

* * *

Max POV

I didn't know whether or not to regret sending Fang away after my freakout. On one hand, I needed time to think things through alone, but on another, I just revealed to Fang for the first time that I was in some way broken. The worst part, Fang thinks it's his fault.

The kiss- the kiss was _good. _Kissing was never one of my triggers, because, sparing the night at the party, Dylan had never kissed me. Nothing about the things he did to me were in the slightest way romantic. Not like the way things are with Fang.

But when Fang's hands had moved from my back to my hips, pressing down on my scars, I froze. I didn't think he could feel the raised lines through the denim of my shorts, but just the faintest whisper of a touch feathering over the casualties of my personal battles was enough to send me into the inferno of my anxiety. Fang poked and prodded at the subject like any overly-concerned boyfriend would do, pressuring me to open up to him. And I snapped.

I yelled, no, _screamed_, at an amazing guy that had proven his worth to me one hundred times over. I had ruined everything.

I always manage to ruin everything.

Two times over I've been the cause of a big move. Two times over my entire family's lives have been turned upside down for my own selfish sake. Two times over I've been the breaking point of my family.

Two times over I've died a little more inside.

The first time I was just ten-years-old by a hair, the first Martinez child to turn double digits. Mom was blown up to capacity with Angel's birth just weeks away, and our life was perfectly picturesque. _My father was in the picture_.

He was a scientist himself, frequently abroad doing work in international labs. His homecomings were always festive and exuberant, filled with gifts from the origin of his travels. He was in Germany, his most frequent destination, during the entirety of the first and the majority of the second term of Mom's pregnancy. Communication was always impossible, so it doesn't take a genius to imagine the surprise on his face when the news was standing right in front of his eyes at his arrival home six months after conception. He claimed to be thrilled for another baby to be on the way, as I was apparently growing up too quickly for him to bear.

It was his first night home that I sneaked into his office way after hours to be with him. His job didn't always claim the majority of his life, and I very much missed the earlier years of my life where he was around on a daily basis. Even though his visits usually consisted of a scarce number of weeks at the most, I made sure to pack them with enough memories to last me months. That was why at some early hour in the morning, when everybody else was dead asleep, I threw on my slippers and wandered down the hall to my father's bureau.

He was always jet-lagged the first few days, so it came as no shock that he was still awake and had been sorting through his overseas findings. As a ten-year-old, I didn't know much about the topic of studies that he invested himself in, other than that it was in the name of science. I heard the water turn on in the bathroom and decided to surprise my father in his office, but when I walked through the double-paned glass doors and right up to his desk, my world stopped spinning.

Pictures, horrible, gruesome, and gory pictures, were scattered over the wooden desktop. Images of children, some were dead, some were almost there, were piled up in the hundreds. A bunch of complex formulas and gene mutations were scribbled over loose pieces of paper, some drifting onto the floor at the fault of the overhead fan. And smack in the center, the most painful picture of all, was my father with two "doctors" I had recognized from the news.

The shorter white-haired man with the thin-framed glasses was Dr. Hans Gunther-Hagen. My school had given us the "don't talk to strangers" lecture and tried to scare us by filling our heads with horror stories, Gunther-Hagen being one of them. He had allegedly been responsible for the kidnappings of twenty-four newborns from nearby hospitals in Seattle over the course of two years. Seattle was our old home, before everything went haywire, and in a city with such a high crime rate, people were incredibly paranoid about any and all alleged crooks. Dr. Gunther-Hagen's face had also been plastered over television broadcasts, posters, and newspapers for years. I couldn't believe that my father, whom I had thought to be one of the most caring people in the world, could possibly have something to do with such a bad man.

The other man on the right was none other than Roland Ter Borcht. I only knew the face and name were associated with the bad guys at the time, courtesy of the evening news broadcast, but now, after many years of hunting for the truth, I pulled some more skeletons out of the closet. Ter Borcht is a German geneticist notorious for sinister human experiments. He's been in hiding for well over a decade now, along with his partner Dr. Gunther-Hagen.

My father had walked in on me spying on his secret work and quickly escorted me back to my bedroom, but the damage was already done; I had seen everything. I was locked in my room without so much as an explanation, and the very next day, my family was in ruins.

My father had killed himself.

All of his work was resorted to ash and his life to a noose on the ceiling fan. Ella had been the one to find him, and still to this day, she refuses to talk about our father in any respect, even just to acknowledge that we had one. Nevertheless, even though most of the evidence was incinerated, my father's suicide uncovered his true identity. Mom, the only person to really understand the extent of the evil at the time, was beyond devastated, blaming herself for not seeing the truth in her husband. She was never once suspicious of the matter of his work.

But after the shocking devastation and heart break, everybody still looked past the real heart of the matter; if it weren't for my actions that night, our father would still be alive. Even though he was a bad man, he was anything but a bad father. It's selfish to wish the world such evil for the sake of having a paternal presence in my life, but I do rue the day I uncovered my father's involvement with the devil's work. I do sometimes wish he was still alive.

But he's not, and like everything else in my life, it's _my fucking fault._

We had to move to get away from the press and publicity of the uncovered sanction of my father's job, and Mom had cousins in Mesa that offered to help us get settled. That was the first time our lives were uprooted and ruined by my doing.

I was the meager age of ten, so maybe it'd be forgivable, had I not fucked up a second time six years later. I'd exerted poor judgement and took away a good portion of a year from everybody that cared about me. Then to make matters worse, I endangered my own family and caused them move away from their home.

I deserved all the pain that I'm in and then some. I don't deserve to be loved.

Thinking Fang and I could actually be something was a mistake.

* * *

**So this is a darker chapter than some of the others, and fair warning, there will be lots more rain before the rainbow. I will continue to post specific trigger warnings at the top of each chapter so you guys can decide for yourself whether or not you would like to read it, because the last thing that I'd ever want to do is trigger a bad reaction. To anybody that may be dealing with any sort of problem or unfortunate situation, my PM is always open. Please, if you _ever _need help of any scale, don't hesitate to reach out to me. Even if it's just a bad day and you want to talk it out, I'm available. No issue is ever too small or too stupid.  
**

**Continue to fly on, my lovelies.**

**~ Alison**


	8. Let Me Concuss You

**Reviewers of the Week:**

Blankslate **and **zoxy2**: **

**Though, sadly, there were only five to choose from. I know that **WAY **more than five people read that chapter, and though I am immensely grateful for the views alone, I really do love your guys' input. It fuels this story and my writing as a whole. If you think that your review won't matter, you're wrong. If you think that it won't make my day better, you're wrong. If you think that I don't value your opinion, you're even more wrong. I _love _hearing the thoughts you had while reading, so please, take a few seconds to tell me! And to those select few who repeatedly make not of this (you know who you are): you deserve a cookie.**

**Anyways, aside from that rant, I do have a chapter for you guys! I hope you like it!**

* * *

Fang POV

I spent most of last night staring at the ceiling of my bedroom, over-thinking what exactly I had done wrong to cause such an emotional reaction from my girlfriend. Max and I weren't really doing anything that we hadn't already done. The kiss had no more intensity or passion than the other dozen or so that we've shared, and my hands didn't touch anything that– _oh. _Oh dear god, she didn't think that I was moving in between her legs, did she?

She must've, that's why she freaked out. _Moron_, Fang. I'm such a fucking moron. Of course she would've freaked out! Our relationship has been somewhat emotionally intimate for one of only two and a half weeks, but physically, we're as prude as a pair of middle schoolers.

Maybe she was just hiding the fact that she's a virgin and was just too embarrassed to tell me. Or maybe I overreacted and she wasn't hiding anything at all; she was just stunned by the sudden acceleration. If so, I'm not only a moron; I'm an asshole.

The sun had gone up a few hours ago, and thanks to my old pal insomnia, I was awake to witness it. I hadn't bothered to look at the clock yet, figuring it would depress me, but seeing now that it was almost ten in the morning I decided to climb out of bed.

I needed to apologize to Max.

* * *

Max POV

I was going to break up with Fang.

He doesn't deserve the flashbacks, the freakouts, or the pain that I've been causing him. The longer I postpone the inevitable the more he'll get hurt, and that's exactly the opposite of what I want. He's an amazing, passionate boyfriend, and so far has seemed okay with the slow and unmoving pace of our physical relationship, but he's also a teenage guy with hormones. He'll eventually want what I can never give him.

_Sex._

It will never happen between the two of us. Not after everything that comes associated with that act. Not after the countless rapes I endured at the hands of Dylan. Not after I've poisoned the surface of my skin. Fang and I can never be anything serious.

Hopefully we can be friends, which we should've been from the start. I'm not ready for any kind of romantic relationship just yet, and I was a fool to think otherwise. But I followed Ella's advice and gave him a chance, only for him to live up to it one hundred percent and then some. I just had to come to the painstaking realization that it wasn't him; it was me. However cliché that is.

How can I ever let somebody love me if I can't even love myself?

_I_ can't.

_Fang_ can't.

_Nobody can._

I was going to break up with Fang.

I did however promise Ella that I'd consult with her about any decisions that she would classify as rash, and figured that this probably fell under that category. I entered her bedroom, thankful that she was painting her nails and not still asleep, and confessed to her my plans.

"I'm breaking up with Fang." I stated, taking a seat cross-legged across from her arsenal of nail lacquers.

"No you're not." Ella rebutted, carefully applying three vertical stripes of mint-colored polish to her nail. I knew that would be her initial reaction, but it didn't faze me. Ella always heard me out. She didn't always agree with me, but she'd certainly listen.

"Ella, I freaked out on him yesterday merely because he touched my hip." I argued, knowing that Ella would undoubtfully conclude that I freaked out because I associated hip-touching with my time in captivity and not because of my secret coping mechanism that she had not one clue about.

"Baby steps, Max. You'll get there."

"Get where? _Sex?_"

Ella paused before speaking. "Not necessarily. Just don't be rash because of one little incident."

"It's not just one incident, Ella! It's me as a whole!" I ranted, my hands starting to talk along with my lips. Apparently I do that when I'm riled up.

"Does Fang have a problem with 'you as a whole'?" Ella asked.

"He doesn't know who I am!"

"He does, Max. He knows the parts of you that make you the amazing person that you are."

"Exactly! He doesn't know the parts that make me such a fuck up!"

"Don't you ever call yourself a 'fuck up' again, you hear me?" Ella scolded, "You are a strong, beautiful woman. And Fang sees that."

"That's the problem, Ella. He'll see only that and then eventually when he starts to see through the façade he'll realize how messed up I really am. And he won't want anything to do with it."

"You have no way of knowing that."

"It's the only reasonable outcome!"

"You're leaving out one clause." Ella stated, putting her nail polish aside. "Fang makes you happy."

"But I cause him pain." I solemnly retorted.

"No, Max. You make him happy too."

"For now." I muttered.

"Look, I think you're making a mistake if you end your relationship with Fang." Ella admitted.

"I can't be selfish with him, Ella."

"Letting yourself be happy isn't selfish." My sister countered my point.

"It is when I'm putting the wellbeing of another person at stake. For what, a few good months together?"

"Max, just shut up for a second, 'kay? I love you, but stop talking." She saw that my lips were still pursed shut and continued, "I see the way Fang looks at you. It's intense, like he's watching to make sure no harm is coming your way and if it does, he'll be there to push you out of the way and take the hit. I can see that he only smiles when you're around, and that your face lights up when your eyes catch his. You make each other happy, Max. Don't throw that away because of a man that's already ruined your life once before. Don't let Him win this time."

"What happens when Fang starts to catch on? I still have panic attacks, and he's already been present in the midst of three. He's not stupid, Elles."

"When the time comes to tell him the full truth, you can take it from there. But for once, Max, live in the moment. For me?" Ella pleaded.

"Okay," I subdued, following Ella's advice per usual. I mean yes, I knew deep down that my relationship with Fang would be messy from the start, but I've had enough pain in my life that if one good thing comes into play, I owe it to myself to jump on it.

I owe it to myself to be happy.

I'm not perfect, and Hannah Montana assured me that I'm not the only one. I've made mistakes in the past, but I'm not about to make another one by making a decision that isn't mine to make. When I'm ready- _if_ I'm ever ready- I'll tell Fang the whole truth. And then, if he decides it's too much for him, we'll split.

And if he chooses to stay_, I haven't the faintest clue._

But he did deserve an explanation for last night, I just didn't have the heart to tell him the truth. I hated to have to lie to him, and to lie to anybody really, but it had to be done, for his sake and mine. All he needed was one little reassurance card that last night's incident had nothing to do with him. One little white lie to soothe the guilt he must be feeling.

They say relationships are built on the foundation of trust and honesty.

I call bullshit.

* * *

Fang POV

I had been blowing up Max's phone with messages for the past fifteen minutes, and she wasn't. Freaking. Answering.

Her bedroom light was on, so it wasn't like she was still asleep. She has a right to be upset, I just wish she'd hear me through. I didn't mean anything from the gesture last night, nothing sexual at least. I didn't mean to offend her boundaries or push her farther than she wanted to go.

I didn't mean any harm.

**F: Can we talk?**

**F: Max, I'm sorry.**

**F: Please respond.**

**F: Max?**

**F: I just want to apologize about last night.**

Five more messages and still no reply. I dropped my head back onto my pillow, staring absently at my white ceiling. I wasn't going to lose Max over one stupid misunderstanding. No way in Hell.

I hopped off the ladder of my loft and dressed myself, prepared to face Max in person. She was either avoiding me or not getting my messages, and either scenario required communication vis-a-vis.

So once I made it out of my house and in front of her's, _I scaled her balcon_y.

Maybe it was considered breaking and entering, but if she wanted to arrest me, at least she'd have to acknowledge my presence first. And probably the fact that I cared enough to climb up the side of her house just for the sake of apologizing. I mean it was a pretty drastic measure.

I pondered to myself on whether or not I should knock on the glass door that separated her bedroom from my body, but considering that I had already taken criminal means of getting to her, without criminal intentions nevertheless, I barged my way in.

And in the process, I scared the shit out of her.

She hadn't heard me opening the door, as tribal printed headphones resided in her ears, but maybe tapping her on the shoulder from behind, without first declaring my presence, was a bad- no, _horrible, _idea, I decided whilst on the ground, rubbing the growing welt on my head and praying to be un-concussed. Turns out the girl has a hard fist. And good reflexes. And the power of a raging bull.

Who would've guessed? I mean she does weigh all of one hundred pounds, maximum.

_Haha, Maximum._

"Shit! Fang, oh my god!" She exclaimed, dropping to her knees in front of me. "I am so, so sorry. I thought you were like, I don't know, a burglar or something."

I let out a good laugh. I got what I deserved, I guess. "'S not your fault." I slurred. Coherent sentences were hard when all the blood in your head is forming a giant lump.

"What are you even doing in here in the first place? How did you get in?"

"Balcony. I came to apologize, for last night."

"You climbed up my balcony?" Max puzzled incredulously.

"Yes siree." God, my head hurt. I wasn't a wuss when it came to pain, and I liked to believe that my pain tolerance was rather high, but _damn. _I now know who not to pick a fight with.

"Stay here while I go get some ice." Max instructed, noticing my particularly un-Fang like behavior. I sounded drunk.

I crawled over to Max's bed and slumped over the wooden post, the combination of dizziness and pain making it too much of a struggle to climb onto the mattress. Jesus Christ, I was so weak I couldn't even take a punch from a girl. Even if that girl happened to strike like Chuck Norris.

Max scurried over to me and pushed a frozen bag of peas to my forehead, causing me to hiss at the contact.

"Sorry, it was this or Angel's pink boo-boo bunny. I thought this would help you keep that last shred of dignity you have left." Max teased, knowing how to kick a guy when he's down. The chill of the ice took it's toll, numbing a substantial amount of pain, while at the same time countering the pulsating heat slushing around in my cranium.

"It's not my fault your fist is made of lead." I defended, pressing the frozen pouch of green spheres firmer to my soon-to-be-bruise.

"I'm really sorry for hitting you." Max's face became more rigid, ditching her playful tone.

"I'm sorry for breaking and entering. Let's make a deal, neither of us will press charges. Do you know what they would do to me in prison?" I joked, lapsing my hand over the one Max had on my cheek.

"I can only imagine." Max chuckled. "Now let's get you onto my bed. You need to lie down."

I complied, flopping onto her bed with little assistance necessary. Max shoved a pillow under my head and joined me at my side, gently massaging my bicep.

"Where did you even learn to hit like that?" I questioned, removing the ice pack for a moment. The cold was starting to sting.

"Prison." She stated nonchalantly, her hand snaking up the hem of my sleeve, close to my shoulder. My eyes widened.

"Kidding!" She exclaimed, lightly slapping my stomach. "I took karate as a kid."

"From who, Jackie Chan?"

Max giggled.

"I'm sorry." She repeated, suppressing her laughter. I could tell she felt guilty, but at the same time, she was getting a kick out of this.

"I'm the one who _came _here to apologize. I guess Iggy was right when he told me I sucked at it."

"You kind of do." Max observed, biting her lip playfully.

"On a serious note," I changed the mood, seeing the smile on Max's face fade. "I'm sorry about last night. I know what you probably thought I was doing when I moved my hands to your hips, but I swear, it had nothing to do with sex. I didn't mean anything by it, and–" I blabbered before Max cut me off.

"Shut up, Fang. You're starting to sound like your sister." She scolded me, kissing my collarbone over the cotton of my shirt.

"But–"

"No. Hush. I didn't freeze because I thought you were trying to get into my pants." Max rolled her eyes. "I fell out of bed the other day. Rewarded myself with a nasty bruise. When you pressed on it, I mean you didn't know, it hurt like Hell." She explained. All this because of a simple _bruise? _No, I don't buy it.

"Why'd you freak out? You could've just said 'ouch', end of story."

"Well, I was embarrassed, falling out of bed and all. And it's, you know, _that _time of month; I was overly hormonal and I overreacted. Sorry." Max hummed, her cheeks burning crimson.

"And I didn't help by interrogating you." I concluded, watching her nod. I've been warned before that pissing off a PMSing girl was like stealing a cub away from a momma bear, but after witnessing it firsthand, I'll be sure to approach with caution from this point on. God, if Max, a somewhat sane human being from what I can tell, gets this emotional on her period, I can't even imagine what will happen when Mother Nature hits Nudge in a few years time.

"I'm sorry you witnessed the worst of my mood swings." Max apologized, hiding her blush with her hands. I had never seen her so embarrassed, and it was adorable. Kind of like a puppy acknowledging that it shit on the carpet, but cuter. And without the aftermath of cleaning shit off the carpet.

"So we're good?" I confirmed, pushing Max's hair behind her ear.

"Of course. My good friends Ben and Jerry never fail me." She laughed, burying her head into my chest.

"You know, you could've just told me that last night," I chuckled. "It would've saved me a whole lot of worrying. I thought that–"

"I know." Max interrupted me. "I just didn't know- well- I mean guys sometimes are grossed out by that kind of stuff, not that I think you're a pussy or anything, but it isn't something that a girl wants to discuss with her boyfriend, even though I trust you and all, but-" Max stuttered.

"Who sounds like Nudge now?" I joked, pecking Max on the lips to silence her. "And for the record, you could never gross me out."

"Stop being nice to me!" Max groaned into my shoulder. "I just sucker-punched you in the face."

"I was rather impressed, to be honest."

"Put the damn peas back on your head. I don't want everyone to think that I'm an abusive girlfriend."

"Yes, mistress. Please don't hit me again." I toyed.

"Don't tempt me."

I splayed the bag of peas across my forehead and pulled Max tighter in between my arms, just in time for her sister to barge through the door.

"Max! I know you're probably in here sulking but I really think that you should-" Ella saw Max curled up in my arms and slapped her hand over her mouth.

"Nevermind." She pivoted on her heel, racing out of the room as quickly as she could. "Sorry!" She shouted from down the hall, slamming her own bedroom door shut. Both Max and I laughed.

"Sulking in your room?" I repeated.

"Ella's a little melodramatic. Just ignore her."

"I'll try." I chuckled, knowing how impossible that'll be. Besides the fact that she's Max's sister, she's also dating my brother. She'll stick to me like gum on the bottom of my shoe.

"Anyways, this- _period,_ stuff. Enlighten me."

"Excuse me?" Max snapped up.

"Don't go apeshit on me again, Mother Nature." I put my hands up in form of surrender. "I feel bad about last night, so I want to make it up to you. What usually helps the PMS stuff."

"Are you seriously asking me this?" Did I want to be asking this, _no_. Did I want to learn the secret horrors of the female body, _no. _Did I really want the answer, _no. _Was I asking, _yes. _Was I clinically insane and suffering from a head injury, _also yes._

"Yes. You're my girlfriend, and like all women, this is inevitable every month, right?" I asked. I had passed sex ed with flying colors, mostly because I'm a teenage guy with access to the internet, and I did know the basics of the menstrual cycle. At least from a secondhand point of view.

"You're ridiculous." Max dismissed me.

"Max, I'm dead serious. I'm a guy, I don't understand any of what you're going through."

"Fine. Shoot."

"I just want to know what I can do to make you feel better. And to make you less of a threat to my physical wellbeing."

"Chocolate." Max practically moaned.

"_Chocolate?_" I repeated. Max nodded.

"Chocolate is the answer to PMS?" I shook my head.

"Chocolate is the answer to everything." Max giggled, the vibrations pulsing against my body.

"Alright, then. How about I come over tonight with a load of chocolate and we can watch a movie or something?" I proposed.

"That, sounds amazing." Max replied.

"It's a date." I finalized, peeling her frail frame off of my body. My presence was surely needed back at Casa De Batchelder.

"I'm taking the peas by the way." I stated, snatching them into my hands.

"You earned those peas." Max giggled, pulling me into an embrace before I could leave.

Damn straight I earned those peas.

* * *

**Chocolate is the magical key to the universe, just so you know. And here's a spoiler to keep you guys riled up for next Friday: I've kept you waiting for long enough, things are 'bout to get steamy. I will finally earn the Hell out of this M rating. Turns out, as I have learned recently, hormonal teenage guys have very racy thoughts about particularly blond teenage love interests ;)  
**

**Fly on!**


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